Being a Britney fan negatively impacts my mental health

[Brit52]

Honestly yes. I feel this.

As other users mentioned I'm sure it triggers some of my own personal issues. I follow britney/exhale as a way to escape my own issues and focus on hers (I should be currently working and I am getting married next week and have put off many tasks in favour of checking exhale/other social media in general not always britney related)

A lot of the way she's been portrayed as a mother really hits home for me. It's not quite the same extent obviously but I've had many people try to gaslight me into believing I'm a terrible mother when I know for certain it's not true (for a time I did believe it). My son is only a month younger than JJ so watching Britney be judged so harshly as a mother especially when the boys were young, I can relate to. She didn't do anything wrong.

I worry for her and I want her free but I don't think it's HER specifically affecting my mental health although i do spend a lot of time here and will talk to anyone who will listen about Britney 

 

She will get free, we will all be so happy and then she can remain as ONLY a sense of joy in our lives without all the extra stress

[Martian_M00d]

I'm also of the path of feeling more optimistic recently because I do see her as a fighter/survivor. I'm sorry the situation is taking you to that place  If it is too much, I would definitely take a step back and take a mental health break. She has a good team of lawyers behind her now, and I'm sure a lot of us are relieved there is SOMEONE with some power to move the legal process forward. I'm sure she appreciates you care 

[Lost In Space]

10 minutes ago, Jordan Miller said:

100% feel you. The weight of BreatheHeavy has been really heavy on me personally (which is of course in-tandem with Britney's situation). Doing a lot of interviews lately and speaking about this ****ed up situation has kinda messed with my head, too. Some times I want to take a break too but how? And now? It's not a good time to. For me right now it's about finding balance. Plus, there's some stuff going on behind-the-scenes with BH that I don't want to open up about yet; it has put me in a weird place emotionally. I hired a life coach recently to help me stay looking ahead while I sort through some of it. Mental health is the MOST important thing. You're not alone  @Lost In Space. We're not crazy fans, we're empathetic for someone feel has been wronged. 

I just wanted to let you know that you are much appreciated. You provide fans an outlet to express themselves without judgement. I know how difficult it must be running this website and having your name dragged through the mud for years when you haven’t done anything wrong. Not to mention being directly threatened by Britney’s father for standing up for Britney’s human rights. Your commitment to Britney and this website is amazing and it takes a  lot of strength to continue doing so after all these years.

Sending you a lot of love 

[Jordan Miller]

1 minute ago, Lost In Space said:

I just wanted to let you know that you are much appreciated and provide fans an outlet to express themselves without judgement. I know how difficult it must be running this website and having your name dragged through the mud for years when you haven’t done anything wrong. Not to mention being directly threatened by Britney’s father for standing up for Britney’s human rights. Your commitment to Britney and this website is amazing and it takes a  lot of strength to continue doing so after all these years.

Sending you a lot of love 

Appreciate that a lot. And thank you for being here and sharing what you feel. It's really important to speak your truth. This topic is one reason why Exhale exists - so we can connect and lean on each other for support.

[Jefferson Silva]

i know that feeling...i have a strong sense of justice and as its clear shes being abused and exploited if I was a super hero I'd fly to the US and would beat the crap out of the whole TEAM CON

that day she gave the deposition in June and the following 2 or 3 days I experienced a lot of anxiety for what was next for her

then I was able to notice the negative effects and took some time off the internet

[GirlOnTheMoon]

This hasn't happened to me with Britney in particular, but it has happened with other topics, and I think you are being wise in recognizing what triggers you and taking the steps necessary to avoid that trigger.

I love Britney as a person too, I think about her every single day, she's always present in my life one way or the other...BUT...She has no clue of my existence, and even though she collectively loves us, she doesn't know me or love me as a person, so as much as I love her I do not let her life situations affect me on a personal level. 

 

[Oprah Winfrey.]

I went into a super angry outburst after her testimony and said something really mean to a family member who constantly has some self caused issue….

I apologized and told them were the anger came from but omg that testimony made me want to do something not great to Jamie..

and yes just in general following this case so deeply since like the time I was 18 has messed me with me, I’m very emotionally attached to someone Idk, buttttt this is a woman whose pain I felt and could relate too!

it’s so sad to know that her comeback story was completely fake because it use to inspire me as a teen. I was bullied in school and Britney’s music and her story really motivated me that I could do and recover from anything!!!

And because of that, that’s why I fight so hard for this stranger 

[MikeHunt]

When I'm overly stressed and my anxiety wont let up, I like to have a lot of s3x. It's a good release for me and it's a fun activity to do.

I do therapy as well. One thing my therapist told me that helped me let go of my strong feelings in situations is this phrase "not my monkey, not my circus". Meaning take a step back, take a look at the situation. Are you directly involved in the drama? How much, if any amount of it should affect you? When you put it into perspective, why put the weight of an entire "circus" on your back when you don't even have a "monkey" in the "circus". ***and I'm not saying we shouldn't have empathy for others and their situations but I do this when it's literally affecting me where it's becoming too heavy. 

We all love Brit! 

[Oprah Winfrey.]

57 minutes ago, Lost In Space said:

Also to clarify, I don’t spend all day and night thinking about Britney, but I think another reason I feel the way I do towards what she’s been through, is because I can unfortunately relate. I’m obviously not famous and have not dealt with the pressures she has on her level, but there is definitely parallels between her life and mine. Especially family wise and the level of control, whilst simultaneously not being cared for at all. 

Tbh at one point I did, this Covid **** made me so bored that I had a lot of freetime to invest to much of myself into this case and movement.

luckily I grew out of this, and I will even admit that I go to a therapist now and I’m doing much better with all my Britney anxiety 

Spoiler

I didn’t go to therapy because of Britney lol just to clarify 

 

[MintChocoLatte]

I deal with mental health issues myself but I can’t say it has made anything worse for me. If you feel like it has for you, take a break. It’s ok. At the beginning I thought differently about this and I feel ashamed about it and I wanna apologize for it. Taking a break is ok because you gotta look out for yourself too. 
the only instance I can think of where this really dragged me down was during the last week. But more so because of what was said about her here than because of the situation in itself. 

[KatieKat]

1 hour ago, Lost In Space said:

This might seem like a strange topic, but I don’t feel like I’m alone here.

By no fault of her own, it is mentally and emotionally draining being a Britney fan. She is a person I have never met, but she is someone I deeply care for her. I genuinely love Britney as a person. Not in a psycho stan way, but as a person I have admired and looked up to since I was 9 years old. I have cried over her situation, felt genuine emotional distress and mental anguish for what she’s been put through. I feel depressed and anxious the majority of the time when I think of her, which is a lot. There is still the joy she brings through her music and stage performances, etc, but it’s all overshadowed by the evil that has been done to her. I think about her many, many times throughout the day and check multiple times per day for updates on her current situation. 

Sometimes I have contemplated unfollowing any Britney account I follow and not checking forums like this anymore because it’s too much. Obviously if anything major happened, I would hear about it somewhere in the mainstream news, but I do feel like it would be better for my wellbeing to not follow her so closely anymore.

Do any of you have similar feelings?

I don’t think it’s strange that you feel that way. I think it just means you are a very empathetic person. 

Kind people who get really involved with all kinds of causes — whether it’s helping someone in an abusive conservatorship, stray animals, homeless people, kids with cancer, etc  — often get to a point where they feel overwhelmed by it.

Once you learn about an issue/hear personal stories of pain and feel that connection, you want to be able to help and make everything okay. But no one can fix it all and it’s frustrating and hard. But the world needs nice people like you who really care about others so take care of yourself!

Some advice I’ve heard about how to deal with this issue is to identify a few realistic ways you can help & to do those things — and then take a break from it. 

So you could (just an example) say okay I’m going to write some letters about conservatorship abuse today and share her testimony on Facebook and then just back away for awhile. 

I hope you feel better soon ❤️ 
 

 

 

 

 

 

[Onyxgirl17]

5 minutes ago, Britman512 said:

Tbh at one point I did, this Covid **** made me so bored that I had a lot of freetime to invest to much of myself into this case and movement.

luckily I grew out of this, and I will even admit that I go to a therapist now and I’m doing much better with all my Britney anxiety 

  Hide contents

I didn’t go to therapy because of Britney lol just to clarify 

 

During COVID is when I really started paying attention to what was going on with my favorite celebrity … needless to say I went down the rabbithole and here we are a year later. 
 

It’s so strange how what happens to Britney affects us. Even though I’ve never met Britney Im emotionally invested in her happiness since she brought me so much happiness as a teenager. When Britney is abused it feels like the older sister I never had and look up to is being abused. 

I cried when “for the record” first aired and I’m not sure why it didn’t hit me then how wrong it was. Like it went in the back of my mind. 

[ExXL]

Look, I feel for her too, sometimes my heart is broken knowing what she's been through, but she's strong and look at the bright side , she's already moving towards freedom, soon she'll be free , let's try to stay positive , she's not gonna be in the cship for ever 

[femmepop]

Yes. This. Thank you. So great to finally hear someone say this so thank you so much for sharing/starting the convo. You expressed it perfectly. 

It's been an exhausting few years, and not just Britney's situation but like the problems/injustices of the world at large! Everything seems so intense. Everyone is going through so much.

And I think with Covid happening and being at home more I have had so much extra time to just dig into Britney's situation and be supportive of the movement, etc. I've always been concerned, but this past year is when everything started becoming clear.

I do have to step away from time to time by taking a few days off from logging into here or from going on Instagram because I know it's not healthy to be too obsessed with it. I'm a very sensitive person too and I was physically ill for a week after hearing her testimony in June, just hearing everything she went through in her own words really got to me. I feel like I was also processing years of my own trauma or whatever.

We feel personally responsible because we're the ones that gave them money all these years to keep her in this terrible situation. They used our love for her to basically enslave her in her career. I feel sick about that. We all want to see her get her life back.

But you have to focus on taking care of you FIRST! It seems things are turning around in her favor (finally) so hopefully it wont feel like this much longer. I also try to remember what a great sense of humor Britney has (even through all she's gone through) and how nice it's been to finally hear from her again, like reconnecting with an old friend.

Thank you again for sharing 

[MARKUS]

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[Peachy]

What happened to Britney severely depressed me and drained me of good energy, (i mean around the time of for the record) life does move on so I have come to terms but ever since Britney changed drastically I felt so sad for her(she was a childhood hero)..it also opened my eyes to the evil and manipulative ways of humans and the world. I have seen Britney live and she has such a powerful energy.. I am happy she is still alive and has a chance at freedom. Like she said; HOPE 

[Million Billion]

1 hour ago, DollyParton said:

Thats not healthy gurl 

Yes, as @DollyParton says, that is not healthy and in my opinion, it has nothing to do with Britney. Usually that behavior is reflected in other aspects of your life. Seek theraphy and hope you are ok. 

[MathNMusic]

1 hour ago, Lost In Space said:

She is a person I have never met, but she is someone I deeply care for her. I genuinely love Britney as a person. Not in a psycho stan way, but as a person I have admired and looked up to since I was 9 years old.

I’m 100% with you here.  A lot of us feel we have a special connection to her and it’s a different kind of love that’s hard to explain.  We have grown up listening to her music, seeing her concerts and having posters of her on our walls so she has always played a role in our lives.  

What I do to help the anxiety over the current situation is to see the light at the end of the tunnel and to know it can only get better for her as times goes by.  Listen to Stronger and know that that is the person who will without a doubt get her life back.

[Easy There]

[limecakes]

Wow, I feel the same way. Not all the time, but definitely since June 23. I have thought about her everyday and I have stressed over it and I feel rage but also hope. All my upset feelings have been slowly turning into hope ever since they allowed her to hire Rosengart. If you need to unfollow accounts for a while, just do that. But please think that the cship days are over and that Brit has someone now that can truly advocate for her. If Britney’s unhappiness brings you stress and sadness, just think remember that Brit is filled with hope and her spirits must be doing a lot better than a year ago.