Jamie Lynn Spears On Battling With Trauma And Her Mental Health
Jamie Lynn Spears appeared on an episode of Good Morning America, during which she tearfully opened up about her strained relationship with Britney Spears, following the end of her sister's arduous conservatorship battle.
As well as discussing the current situation with her family, Spears has bravely revealed her struggle with trauma and mental health.
In an interview with People, The Sweet Magnolias actor explained that her father James' alcoholism, as well as the pressures of perfectionism, led to her battle with difficult mental health issues.
The 30-year-old mother-of-two said: 'For the first time in my life I feel OK.'
While recalling 'feeling very loved' as a child, Spears explained that her dad's temper and absences, as well as his relationship with alcohol, provoked feelings of 'anxiety' due to the 'unpredictability'.
She did, however, credit her career – involving her early days of starring in small-screen shows such as Nickelodeon comedy Zoey 101 – for helping her to manage the crippling feelings.
'It was a way for me to control a situation – I didn't have any control as a young child – and I think that it was my saving grace, but also my escape.'
Spears was a teenage mum after becoming pregnant at 16 with her and ex-boyfriend Casey Aldridge's child Maddie, who tragically almost died in an all-terrain vehicle (ATV) accident in 2017.
She has said her experience of motherhood enabled her to 'grow up'.
Of the period after having her first child, she told the same news outlet: 'I was a teen mum, but I was so programmed to be perfect that I was like, "Wow, I can't also be a single teen mom." More importantly, I wanted my daughter to have what I thought I always wanted: my parents to be together. But then I remembered that my parents might have been together, but it was not a healthy situation. Making that choice was the first time I felt confident to say, "I have to do this for myself."'
Spears has also discussed the struggles that came with trying to be a role model and live up to renowned sister Britney.
'Everybody has pressure they put on themselves, but for me, it was on another level because I did have a sister who, in my eyes, was perfect. That pressure felt heavy at times ... I was so afraid of letting people down,' she explained.
Spears, who has been diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder and who has gone through therapy as well as been treated with medication for her mental health, has expressed that she's in a positive state of mind now.
'I'm very conscious not to lie to myself anymore because I think that my biggest issue my whole life was pretending to be perfect,' she said. She did, however, have these loving words to say of her husband: 'I love him because my daughters are getting a father that I always wanted, that they can count on.'
Spears' new memoir, Things I Should Have Said, is due to be released on January 22.
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