Britney Spears’ Abortion Choice During Justin Timberlake Romance.
Excerpts from the latest memoir by the pop star unveil the impact of the contentious conservatorship she ultimately broke free from, as well as her decision to undergo an abortion.
The initial excerpts from Britney Spears’ highly anticipated memoir, “The Woman in Me,” have been released, shedding light on the alleged mistreatment she endured during the unconventional conservatorship she was placed under from 2008 to 2021. Additionally, the memoir touches upon her reported abortion while she was in a relationship with Justin Timberlake.
In the excerpts recently published by People magazine in the United States, preceding the book’s official release on October 24th, Spears reflects on the abortion experience, saying, “To me, [the pregnancy] wasn’t a tragedy. My love for Justin was profound, and I always envisioned a future family together. This just happened much sooner than I had anticipated. However, Justin wasn’t enthusiastic about the pregnancy. He believed we weren’t prepared to welcome a child into our lives, asserting that we were too young… I’m unsure if it was the right decision. If it had been solely up to me, I would never have gone through with it. Yet Justin was resolute in his desire not to become a father.” The couple dated from 1999 to 2002 when they were both in their late teens and early twenties. Timberlake has not issued any statements regarding Spears’ account.
In her reflections on the conservatorship, Spears expresses, “Thirteen years elapsed during which I felt like a mere semblance of my true self. Looking back now, the fact that my father and his associates held dominion over my body and finances for such an extended period deeply disturbs me… I transformed into a mechanical entity, but not just any mechanical entity – more like a child-like automaton. I had been subjected to such infantilization that I was gradually losing parts of my authentic self… The essence of the woman within me remained suppressed for an extended period. They expected me to be a wild performer on stage, as dictated, while being a robotic figure the rest of the time.”
Spears’ father, Jamie Spears, has not commented on the extracts, but has previously defended the conservatorship arrangement, whose restrictions included curtailed custody of her children and Spears having an allowance rather than access to her own money. “Where would Britney be right now without that conservatorship? … I don’t know if she’d be alive,” he said in December 2022. “For protecting her, and also protecting the kids, conservatorship was a great tool. Without it, I don’t think she would have got the kids back.”
In 2021, Spears made a series of astonishing claims about the conservatorship, during court hearings that ultimately resulted in her being released from the arrangement in November that year – including that she was forced to use birth control and take medications against her will. Jamie Spears was suspended from the conservatorship arrangement ahead of its eventual dissolution.
Within her memoir, Spears reiterates certain claims made during court hearings, as well as references an August 2022 voice memo she briefly shared online before deleting. Among these allegations is her assertion that her father had criticized her body weight. She articulates, “Experiencing a perpetual sense of inadequacy is profoundly soul-crushing, especially for a young individual. He ingrained that belief in me when I was just a child, and even after I had achieved so much, he persisted in perpetuating it.”
She further elaborates, “I transformed into more of a presence on stage than an individual. Music had always coursed through my veins and defined my essence, and they robbed me of that… I did not deserve the treatment I received from my family… It amounted to the death of my artistic creativity.”
Regarding the infamous head-shaving incident, Spears attributes it to the relentless scrutiny she faced since her initial chart successes during her late teens. She states, “I had been subjected to continuous judgment and comments about my physique since my teenage years. Shaving my head and acting out were my ways of pushing back against this. However, under the conservatorship, I was made to comprehend that those days were behind me.”
Other excerpts delve into her early entrance into the entertainment industry during childhood, her iconic snake-themed performance at the 2001 MTV VMAs, and her brief stint in acting, notably in the film “Crossroads,” which has recently been re-released in theaters. She reflects, “The experience wasn’t a smooth one for me. I think I unintentionally ventured into Method acting – only, I didn’t know how to step out of character… That essentially marked the beginning and end of my acting career, and I felt a sense of relief.”
Following the conclusion of the conservatorship, Spears has resumed her music career, releasing tracks like “Hold Me Closer” in collaboration with Elton John and “Mind Your Business” with will.i.am. Additionally, she tied the knot with her longtime partner, Sam Asghari, although the couple parted ways after 14 months of marriage.
