Britney Spears

[Pomped]

I’ll start by saying I know this isn’t Tattle Life, but I’ve just caught up on instagram and Britney’s latest posts are truly horrifying and upsetting. As someone who grew up with her (& Christina) as my idols it’s so saddening to see what’s happened.

Has anyone else watched?

That's a good point, most of the dancing tiktok videos I see look insane and dead eyed to me😂

I think the problem is the contrast between who she was and who she is now (well at least what we can see). Agree there are a lot of strange and stranger people on TikTok but we don’t have a point of reference or any indication as to whether they are putting the act on.

I try and not watch Britney’s videos as I find it quite uncomfortable. Like she is stuck in that ‘baby one more time’ video as a school girl but clearly in a completely different frame of mind. It is truly bizarre and unsettling that it’s there for everyone to see. Surely someone cares enough about her to intervene?

What does intervene mean though?

we can possibly know whether or not someone comes in every day- a paid employee or her mum- makes her meals, reminds her to shower, take her meds and drives her to her medical appointments.

intervene in her social media though? Why? If she’s coping as well as she can and as healthy as she can be why would stopping her posting on social media be a priority?

she did seem healthier when she was married- strongly suspect her husband was basically a carer. And she had company so probably wasn’t as lonely.

Unwell but her dad and his lawyer still forced her to work, do a world tour, a 4 year Vegas residency and release 3 stupid albums? People in conservatorships don't and usually physically and mentally can't work. They used it for control, even forcing her to have an IUD fitted, not for safeguarding. It was a complete abuse and her dad in particular should be in jail.

She's been unwell for some time now, but at least she's not being forced to work anymore (and probably never will again, good for her).

She hopefully has sourced her own mental treatment and support. Poor woman

Just read some more posts and agree that if her mental health problems are limited to posting uncomfortable videos then I suppose her family would be grateful. Nobody can just step in and tell her what to do. I have a mentally ill BIL and it’s a handful to manage and his physical safety is all we really get involved in tbh.

Surely someone cares enough about her to intervene?

Intervene how though? It would probably be far more useful if there were people intervening to ensure that her house is clean, she's eating well and her pets are looked after. But you can't force an adult to accept help unless they meet a very high bar of unwellness.

I did put some more thought into this after I posted and posted again. Agree… it’s difficult and we see just a slice of the information on social media. Hopefully she does have people who care about her watching out for her. Or at least people who are paid to care for her.

I didn’t say that though. I said the conservatorship preceded the start of her making the videos for a good 15 years or so so it was clearly granted on other more important evidence than just making (future) videos! The videos are just another unsettling thing in a long line of unsettling things that has spanned two decades.

I fully agree though that some of those nearest and dearest to her have behaved appalling and parasitic towards her. That doesn’t negate that she probably needed someone loving and sensible and competent to make decisions for her. She may have also been resistant to help. I have no idea. I just hope she gets better, poor girl.

What I find saddest of all is she used to be a really talented dancer, and now she just stumbles around, bumping and grinding like
its 3am in a nightclub and she’s had one too many Proseccos. I hate to think where it will end.

Also made an observation that her comments are turned off on her videos. It really is just a one way outlet. She can’t receive anybody’s thoughts which is possibly a good thing because SM can be a terrible place for bullying.

I also find the lack of co-ordination and rhythm strange. Makes you wonder if she is medicated or worse.

I hope this isn’t an insensitive question. I’m just very curious.

Britney is clearly unwell. Is her current condition a direct consequence of her fame/being a child “star”/exploited? Or would she have become unwell regardless? Even is she has the calmest and most healthy upbringing and adolescence?

I'm sure posts like this are meant in good faith, but it just fuels additional scrutiny and speculation which isn't helping her.

She was abused, drugged and mistreated for most of her adult life, had her ever move followed and scrutinised and criticised, the mental scars of which will probably never heal. Let her make her dancing IG videos if that's what makes her happy.

Hw could anyone possibly know the answer to that @Slain. The point is she's unwell now, and people should just leave her be.

People have been saying for a decade it won’t end well and she’ll be headline indicating she’ll die young- I guess that’s she’ll live like this until well after we’re talking about her. I don’t think they’ll be so big dramatic end. Most people with serious mental illness just trudge through life, as many others have said.

No one knows (well, no one who can speak about it)

You know people live like that and do things like that here dont you? Often on the bus or in the street or in front of their peers

They're not well, or they're ND or they're subject to substance misuse. They keep a filthy home, their kids have been removed. What do you think is or should happen to and for those people? A full time carer to shut them in their room all day, take their phone? Remove them from the pub or the supermarket when they start getting lairy?

We dont do that. Why would anyone do that for her?

What do your concerns suggest to you should happen?

The alternative is that people like this are locked in asylums like they used to be.

“people with obvious mental illness should not be seen in public”.

it’s exactly this. As a society we have become so uncomfortable with mental illness. We would rather such people were locked away and medicated, which often results in zero quality of life for those affected but as long as it suits social norms right? So what if Brittany makes demented videos on insta. She’s not well, but she’s living her life with autonomy and she’s not hurting anyone.

The one of her in the polka dot top she’s off her head on drugs, you can tell by the face she keeps pulling

Anti psychotic drugs usually cause problems with your gross motor movements and also a lot of face pulling or gurning.

Agree! She was at the absolute top of her game. When I think back to my teens, she was one of the biggest stars.

I think people want a simple happy ending where she gets well again, but we don't know the complexities of her situation. I wish her well.

Sadly I don’t think she’ll make old bones

Anti psychotic drugs usually cause problems with your gross motor movements and also a lot of face pulling or gurning.

I obviously don't know the ins and outs of Britney Spears' mental condition/s, if any, but I DO know that especialy in the US they are really keen on antipsychotics like Quetiapine, including a lot of off-label use. A friend on mine who lives there was put on that as well as a whole other medley (gabapentin, mirtazipine, some sort of benzo) for what was in my mind shockingly spurious reasons. That's before we get started on the overprescription of opiods that triggered the crises...

Absolutely this. Psychotropic meds prescribed too young absolutely wrecked the health of one of my close friends. It's crazy how trigger happy they are with that stuff over there.

Absolutely this. Psychotropic meds prescribed too young absolutely wrecked the health of one of my close friends. It's crazy how trigger happy they are with that stuff over there.

My friend wasn't even mentally ill! She'd had a physical illness with a side effect that was causing her distress (not irrationally), and that was where it went.
I'm sorry your friend had her health wrecked.

I wonder the same @Slain I suspect a lethal combination. I don't think fame automatically leads to mental illness to that degree but if someone has a propensity for it then they could crumble under pressure much sooner than another person. Many former child stars are normal stable people that might go through a 'wild' phase but bounce back as they mature. Then there are many, many, famous people who were independent adults who have money and success and still succumb to drugs and mental illness. I think there had to be a vulnerability within her that made her a poor candidate for what life threw at her. That's just my absolutely non professional opinion.