Couldn't take the pain anymore: Britney Spears breaks silence following Sam Asghari divorce filing

Britney Spears is headed for another marital split after her husband of just 14 months, Sam Asghari, filed for divorce, in the latest personal crisis for the troubled pop star. Asghari, a 29-year-old Iranian-born model, cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for ending the marriage, court documents filed Wednesday in Los Angeles show.

Now, the ...Baby, One More Time singer is breaking her silence. The pop superstar, 41, wrote in a statement about their impending divorce on Instagram on Friday, “As everyone knows, Hesam and I are no longer together. Six years is a long time to be with someone so, I’m a little shocked but I’m not here to explain why because it's honestly nobody’s business."

Spears went on to add, “But, I couldn’t take the pain anymore honestly. In some sort of telepathic way I have been receiving so many messages that melt my heart from friends and I thank you.” The singer continued, "I’ve been playing it strong for way too long and my Instagram may seem perfect but it’s far from reality and I think we all know that. I would love to show my emotions and tears on how I really feel but for some reason, I’ve always had to hide my weaknesses."

The 90s superstar furthered, "If I wasn’t my dad’s strong soldier, I would be sent away to places to get fixed by doctors. But that’s when I needed family the most. You’re supposed to be loved unconditionally - not under conditions!"

Spears concluded the post by writing how she will be "as strong as I can and do my best. And I’m actually doing pretty damn good, Anyways have a good day, and don’t forget to smile."

The couple was married in 2022, about a year after a California judge dissolved a controversial 14-year conservatorship that had barred her from handling her own life and finances, a legal arrangement many fans considered exploitative.

Under the conservatorship - which was largely managed by her father Jamie Spears - the singer has said she was prevented from having a contraceptive IUD removed despite her desire for more children, claimed she was forced to work, and said her phone was tapped.

"I just want my life back," Spears told the court in 2021. The singer - whose hits include Oops!... I Did It Again, and Toxic - reportedly has a prenuptial agreement in place that will protect her assets. Asghari's divorce petition says the two have been separated since last month.

Spears rocketed to fame in her teens on hits like ...Baby One More Time, becoming one of the world's reigning pop stars at the turn of the millennium. But she suffered a highly publicised 2007 breakdown, which included attacking a paparazzo's car at a gas station, and the conservatorship began just a year later.

Asghari and Spears met in 2016 when he appeared in a music video for her single Slumber Party. The couple announced a surprise pregnancy in 2022 but said it had ended in miscarriage only weeks later. Spears has two teen sons, Sean and Jayden, with her ex-husband Kevin Federline. She was also briefly married - for less than three days - to childhood friend Jason Alexander.

After reports of her split with Asghari began to surface, Spears posted on Instagram Wednesday night that she was planning to buy a horse, but made no mention of her marital status. Her memoir, The Woman In Me, is due to be released in October.

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