Britney Spear's book

[Mooshamoo]

Her autobiography is out today. Did anyone read it. Honestly it's shocking.

What they put her through under the conservatorship. It's really awful. It's nearly unbelievable.

She wasn't allowed to eat what she wanted. She wasn't allowed to see her children.

Her father would lock her up in psychiatric centres if she disagreed with him .

Really awful.

I agree that Britney is obviously very unwell now. It’s hard to believe that she is in any fit state to coherently have written a book, but I don’t doubt any of it. Anyway, I’m sure that lawyers for all involved will have combed through it, so she won’t have said anything that is false.

All you have to do is look at her in her prime - her body alone looks ripped to perfection. It must have taken endless hours of exercise and an extremely disciplined diet, which it now seems she was forced to do by those around her.

Her whole life is very sad, imo. I really don’t understand why people can’t show her more compassion.

I find those who argue in favour of the conservatorship bizarre as I have never heard anyone argue for a woman who is fully capable of working to have their right to make their own decisions taken away. Those who lack capacity are generally treated with more respect than Britney was.

This. Her conservatorship was dodgy AF to say the least. They are really difficult to get in California and aren't given on mental health grounds alone. Something really underhanded happened there.

THIS. Apparently she was mentally unwell to do what she wanted but not mentally unwell enough to be be used as a work horse for other peoples gain.

Thanks for clarifying these points.

I agree these "reasons" are terrible and can't be justified.

I am sad to hear what's happened to her.

I'm going to have to read the book myself now! I hope the money from my purchase will go to her.

Yes, it would be interesting to read those court documents that put her under conservatorship. I did listen to her Two hour disposition on live court TV telling the judge why she should be removed from conservatorship and she sounded incredibly elocuent, smart and very very sane in my eyes. I always wonder the real reasons why would a judge decide that she needed to be treated the same as an older person suffering from dementia. Mind boggles, but then again… I haven’t read those initial court documents. On the other hand me thinks that if her reasons for being put into a conservatorship were unfair (with all the money and lawyers) she would have sued her family and the courts By now but she hasn’t , and there’s a reason for that…

Please do, I enjoyed it much more than I thought I was. Also, I’m very sorry about your relative. Wishing you both well x

For those arguing Britney is still unwell and can't manage her own estate - Britney is an adult, she earned all of that money and she has the absolute right to spend it as she sees fit. If she wants to spend it all and leave herself destitute that is her choice and right.
She may have mental health issues but she does not appear to lack capacity. I don't know what the evidence would be that she lacks capacity but dancing about in her pants definitely isn't it.

There is so much misogyny in how Britney is perceived and treated and its all over this thread. She's allowed and celebrated for dancing in revealing clothes on a stage. Do that on her own terms, and she's mentally unwell and should have her rights restricted.

It's really shocking. A man would never be treated like this.

Fuck me, the misogyny reeks on this thread.
YANBU OP.

5 years ago John Oliver looked at guardianships/conservatorship in USA - there were/are huge issues - his segment mainly focuses on OAP as they are most at risk but there is a lack of oversight - depending heavily on oversight from over worked courts and judges and it's very hard to get out from under.

I do think she was likely very unwell - but to be so high profile and so trapped for so long is quite shocking.

I've not read and don't intend to read the book - it isn't my sort of read.
However, just because someone is mentally unwell, it doesn't mean she is lying. Her publishers/ lawyers would have been very careful about the content of the book for fear of libel suits.

I hope she can find a healthier future.

Thanks, I'll definitely give it a read now.

Thanks for your good wishes. I have a couple of relatives where every time the phone rings, I dread what the latest is going to be. It's a real rollercoaster of a life. Thanks again.

I think she’s just uncovered a gloomier side of life that people would rather believe doesn’t exist. When I was 6, I went to court where social services, who made decisions for my mum at that point, argued for her to be sterilised.

Her conservatorship is unusual because she wanted to perform, and has so much money. Usually very rich people with difficulties would hide them away; and very famous people would want to take a step back. I’m not suggesting that is right, but that’s the state of society. In her case, she wanted to perform.

A lot of her book makes the bipolar theory sound even more plausible; to be honest, and I suspect her crazy videos are when she stops medicating herself, which is pretty often. Throw in fame on that scale, and she built herself on the idea she was America’s sweetheart, and wasn’t at all prepared for when anything damaged that perception.

Her father should never have been her conservator but it’s common in the US for it to be a parent.

I think it’s really telling that her own children have chosen to distance from her, to be honest. I hope she gets help and can rebuild; because she’s lost a lot of years to her condition and the poor management of it. I’d be concerned if she was my friend that she’s rebuilding based on the attention, and that when she starts to lose attention, it’ll send her spiralling. Especially if that coincides with the menopause and no future children.

I’m not sure a book was a good idea. She feels she’s told her side of the story now so hopefully she’ll get some closure from that; but I can’t see any benefits to her other than that.

Laura Richards did a lot of coverage on the court case on her Crime Analyst podcast at the time. She looked at the legal aspects as well as the hallmarks of coercive control.

She did 5 separate episodes on the case, if you search for the podcast it was episodes 28, 29, 30, 41 and 48.

She is very very unstable - just look at her Instagram. She's incredibly unwell. I am not going to read it, because I don't think any of what she's written can be considered factual. Since her "freedom" she's spiralled completely out of control. She's dancing around with knives, strangling herself, there is no way she's better off in the situation she's in now.

The whole situation makes me feel desperately sad. It’s remarkable she’s still standing to be honest.

I'm just wait for Diane Sawyer to apologise for that resurfaced interview. I hadn't seen it before but it was truly horrible.

@YouveGotAFastCar

She didn’t want to preform. She wanted time off after her split with Justin but was denied this. Under the conservatorship, she basically hated her entire stint in Vegas. She asked for time off and was told no.

I also disagree that there are no benefits to her writing this book other than to tell her side of the story. These are some of the reviews she has had:

"In Britney Spears' memoir, she's stronger than ever."

• The New York Times

"She finally has her say in this astute indictment of the system that exploited her."

• The Gaurdian

"Raw, unfiltered and breathtaking in its rage."

• The independant

"Short, bittersweet and extremely powerful memoir."

• The telegraph

"A worthy act of self-resurrection."

• Los Angeles Times

"It's impossible to read The Woman In Me and not feel sad and outraged on Spears' behalf."

• BBC

Sure seems like a lot of people are rethinking their perception of her.

I’m not sure a book was a good idea. She feels she’s told her side of the story now so hopefully she’ll get some closure from that; but I can’t see any benefits to her other than that.

I suspect a lot of her current behaviour is because she's traumatized from having so little control over her own life and understandable trust issues - she's likely been told the frankly abusive situation she was in for year was for her own good.

I don't think the book is a terrible idea - more people will know her side and what she went though and I do think it will reset perceptions of her to some extent.

At first I was sort of roling my eyes at the idea. But then I also think- everyone else hangs their dirty laundry, so why not her? I just hope she actually wanted to write it rather than someone else pushing her to benefit from that tragedy of a life.

Ultimately, it's just sad she can't focus on healing in private, as probably in her head everything has to be always public, she's so used to it now.

JT's response was interesting, on the one hand I can see why he wants to distance himself from it after 20 something years or however long it has been, but then he has not come out looking well after the abortion revelations.

The fact she hasn't taken her own life given everything she's been through is quite an achievement tbh

I just read an extract there regarding her quickie vegas wedding to her childhood friend. She seems to be of the opinion that her family’s fury was a massive overreaction “as if I had just started word war 3”, and she brushes it off as something fun to do when you’re bored. She comes across as deeply irresponsible and immature.

@TheDuchessOfMN she is allowed to be irresponsible and immature though. Everyone has the right to make choices others think are poor choices. That never gave anyone the right to lock her up, force her to work and steal her money.

Oh absolutely, I agree with you @wherethewildthingis She strikes me as incredibly vulnerable

I’m listening to the audio book now, for all those who haven’t read/listened to it yet, hold your horses, this isn’t her Instagram rants. It’s very well written. Yes clearly she has an agenda against her family.
But it’s still it’s so shocking, even if you don’t believe her, how she felt during her whole life is valid and heartbreaking, I do believe her, it really rings true as i listen, and I think she writes eloquently and tells her story so well. I think she is unwell but I also think she understands more than they realised and has written the experience of being her really well.