Many people have a lot to say about pop icon Britney Spears. Her rapid rise to glory, huge downfall and shocking comeback is one of Hollywood's most intriguing stories.

But after Britney's breakdown the legendary star was never the same again. Unlike Madonna and Cher, who have proven to be timeless superstars, way after their prime, Britney's success today relies heavily on the memory of who she was. Though the pop star hates to be put in "that category", she became the victim of her own fame. Today Britney suffers from mental illness, which ultimately led to a loss of self and an empty personality. Her passionless stage presence today is the total opposite of the explosive performer she once was. Stay with me as we explore what happened to Britney Spears.

Britney Spear's first single "Baby One More Time" was released in 1998. The schoolgirl tune shot the shy southern girl next door straight into stardom. Once just another kid lucky enough to star in Disney's "Mickey Mouse Club" Britney Spears had quickly become the representation of an entire pop generation. Fame, money and power came so fast, that Britney had no time to understand the phenomenon she had become.

Just 17-years old, Britney Spears became the face of "bubblegum pop". Pop music in the late 90's and early 2000's was a dynamic mixture of energetic dance tunes with a simple story told by a song. Her first album "Baby One More Time" introduced the sweet, small town girl to a big world. Her Kentwood, Louisiana accent was adored all over talk shows, radio shows and television personalities praised her. Britney's innocence and stunning beauty had captured the hearts of the entire world.

The "Drive Me Crazy" star's voice, although not as powerful as fellow Mickey Mouse musketeer Christina Aguilera (who also entered the music industry around the same time), was backed up by some energetic and well-executed dance moves. Spears was very athletic growing up and dancing was definitely her strong suit, other than that... the girl could put on a heck of a show. When she would hit the stage you could not take your eyes off of her. This girl was the complete package; beautiful, sweet, quirky, fun, talented, provocative and creative.

It wasn't long until Britney Spears was all over the cover of every magazine. She was quickly named "America's sweetheart" even though her sexual innocence stirred lots of controversy. Her 1999 Rolling Stone cover featured 17-year old Spears holding a Teletubbie, while on the phone wearing a bra and polka dot boy shorts with an open blouse. People were shocked, yet intrigued by this girl who could make the world shake just by her presence. Britney became our addiction; we couldn't wait to see more of her, her music, her videos, her concerts and her appearances.

Britney's "Baby One More Time" sold more than 30 millions copies worldwide. The pop star's second studio album "Oops I did it Again" (smart name eh?) sold 25 million worldwide breaking records once again. Her "Oops I did it Again" tour grossed about $40.5 million, she scored a $7 million contract with Pepsi and wrote a book with her mother called "Britney Spears Heart to Heart". Britney was on top of the world and right after her legendary 2000 MTV VMA's performance, she publically confirmed her relationship with Justin Timberlake.

The "Oops I did it Again" star could not had been more adored, hated, wanted and envied at this point. Then came Justin Timberlake. Justin was part of one of the biggest boy bands in the millennium. Justin was also from the south, funny, talented and intelligent. He had the most adorable curly hair that you could ever imagine. Him and Britney had also shared the stage on the "Mickey Mouse Club" where he was even Britney's first kiss. It was the perfect match, the most beloved young Hollywood couple of our time.

During the MTV special "The Diary of Britney Spears" in 2001 viewers got an inside look into Britney's life and relationship with Justin. She was happy, laughing and completely in love with her boyfriend. Her dance rehearsals and performances were full of expression and passion. Britney was living her perfect dream. What people didn't know is how much Britney relied on Justin. He was her rock; the only person who understood what it was like to be young, famous and rich. He kept her grounded and true to whom she was.

In 2002, Britney and Justin broke up and shortly after he released the song "Cry Me a River". Neither of them gave an explanation as to why they had called it quits, but by the lyrics and music video to Justin's song, it insinuated that the pop princess had been unfaithful. Britney wrote "Everytime" out of her fourth studio album "In The Zone", in response to Justin's "Cry Me A River". In the song she admits, "My weakness caused you pain and this song is my sorry". Nobody ever really understood how could it be true that even though Brit adored Justin she would cheat on him. Neither JT nor Britney ever explained the details of their break-up and this is actually when Britney's downfall started behind close doors.

She started to party. She finally entered the Hollywood party scene that she had kept herself away from for so long. People say that Britney started to experiment with drugs and that alcohol began become a big part of her life. During a documentary later on she confirms that after the break up with Justin she was lost. She just wanted to forget the pain and admits she became a "party girl". During those days of clubbing she met back up dancer Kevin Federline, the man that would change her life forever.

Kevin was tall, handsome and very smooth with the ladies. His bad boy persona didn't take long to capture new wild Britney's attention. After marrying a childhood friend, Jason Alexander in Vegas and annulling the marriage 55 hours later, Brit was ready for another unexpected adventure. In 2004 she took Kevin with her on her "Onyx Hotel" tour around the world. She also decided to record her own reality television documentary with Kevin called "Chaotic". On the show Britney was no longer the sweet southern girl known as Justin's girlfriend. "Chaotic" was like being present at a one nightstand. Her relationship with Kevin was lustful and nothing that should have been on television.

 Only months after knowing Kevin Federline, who left his pregnant girlfriend (with his second child) actress Shar Jackson for Britney, wedding bells rang. Britney married Kevin on September 18, 2004. She then took a break to start a family in which she had Sean Preston Federline and Jayden James Federline. On November 2006, Spears filed for divorce from Kevin, making this the final hit for the star. Though her remix albums, last singles and fragrances were still doing great, some say that the star started to suffer from post-partum depression.

In 2007 Britney started spiraling out of control. Even though she was now a mom she was seen out partying with Paris Hilton, the heiress known to be a hardcore partier. Britney's personal life began to appear more and more on the tabloids. And after she walked into a beauty salon and completely shaved her hair off, we knew that Britney was not well. She checked herself into rehab in Antigua for only a day when she checked herself right back out. From then on paparazzi would viciously chase Britney around the streets of L.A catching the star at a questionable state each time.

She would run around in dirty clothes, she would sit and cry on sidewalks and even picked up an odd British accent. Even through all of this the pop diva released her fifth studio album "Blackout" which actually did pretty well. Her performance at the 2007 MTV Music Awards however was the confirmation that the performer we once knew was totally gone. She was sluggish, she hardly moved and she was basically tripping over her own feet. People were in total shock, how could such a high level artist and performer put on such a terrible and amateur show? Britney was truly experiencing a total blackout.

In 2008 Britney was finally hospitalized and diagnosed with mental illness. After loosing custody of her two kids to Kevin Federline, Britney lost it all. The details of her illness have never been released to the public but many say that Britney is indeed Bi-polar. In her 2008 documentary "For the Record" we finally get to hear from Britney herself what happened to her. She confirms that her downfall began after her and Justin's break-up. She then admits that she got through it somehow, but when Kevin left her, she just couldn't take it.

At this point of the documentary Britney is still with us. What I mean by that is that she still has a personality. She can express herself with more than a "that's really cool" and "it was fun". She still smiles, jokes and does her nerdy laugh. By this time, her father James Spears already has full conservatorship over Britney. Meaning that she is no longer considered capable of handling her own career, business nor life therefore, it is all handled by Spears Senior. The star expresses how she feels trapped and even breaks into tears in a heartbreaking moment where she just says, "I'm sad".

For Britney Spears fans, this documentary gave us the answers we need it. But "For the Record" also showed Britney rehearsing and recording the upcoming videos for "Womanizer" and "Circus" for her sixth studio album "Circus" (named accordingly again). This documentary gave us hope that Britney was going to get back on stage and shock us out of control as she first did in 1998. But after this show her team decided that it would be best if Brit would start taking daily medications to stabilize her personality disorder. "For the Record" was the last time we ever saw a piece of who Britney Spears once was.

It seems like Britney's mental illness was triggered by the distortion of fame and possibly not being able to handle the drugs and alcohol (even though she denies ever doing drugs & these are ONLY assumptions). Today Britney has continued to make hit records and sell millions of albums. But her fans only attend her concerts because they are loyal to only a memory of our Britney. She dances on stage with no passion, as if this is now simply a way to put food on the table and not her dream. Her dancers out perform her and forget about ever hearing her sing live (not even "Everytime" which she never used to lip synch). Her interviews are robotic, as if she is reading lines and her vocabulary is very limited.

Spears always has a blank expression on her face and every conversation is awkward and dull. These medications have numbed her to the point that there is no one in there; no soul, no brain, no feeling. The medications aren't controlling her personality disorder; they have completely taken away her personality and her abilities as an artist. Now we understand that maybe Britney herself decided to go with the doctor's orders to simply protect her relationship with her kids.

They were too young to remember the chaos that their mom went through in 2007 and as a concerned mom she cannot take loosing her kids again. But hello James Spears? Is this the best thing for your daughter? Since we do not know the extent of Britney's mental illness nor are we doctors, we can only speculate, complain and hope that Britney is truly okay. At the end, her health is what's important.

I hope you stayed with me through all of this. There are other articles out there about Britney's "change" and I am feeling sane to know I am not the only one totally annoyed by the media who just pretends that her behavior is totally normal. As one of your fans I will always remain loyal to your music Ms. Spears, but I must admit, I miss you. We wish Britney, her family and friends the best. "This was the story about a girl named...Lucky".