Britney Spears Felt Like 'Ugly Duckling' While Growing Up But This One Thing Gave Her Confidence

When the teen pop sensation Britney Spears was everyone's crush in the 2000s, she felt like an "ugly duckling." The Toxic singer shared her insecurities in a lengthy Instagram post from 2020, saying that while growing up, like any other girl, she also suffered from body issues, except that this specific hairstyle boosted her confidence and made her feel "protected." 

Spears featured a blue and white top, a choker necklace, and her hair pulled back in a selfie alongside a caption, "I know I need bangs. !!!!! Who would have thought bangs could make you look waaaaay younger ?!?! I stopped having bangs in the 3rd grade and I remember like it was yesterday .... it was such a big deal to expose my forehead …. only pretty people in the south could do that and I never felt pretty enough to pull it off," per PEOPLE. 

Furthermore, she opened up about how only girls at beauty pageants exposed their foreheads because they were pretty. And she "never felt" like she could be one of those. "I had bad teeth and felt like an ugly duckling. I met with a modeling agency, but I wasn't pretty enough so I went home and said, 'Maybe I can be like the older girls, and show my forehead' !!!! I did and it looked sooooo bad, but I thought I was gorgeous." 

"I think I knew it didn't look good but I did it because I thought it made me cool .... and I've pretty much had it like that ever since !!!!" continued Spears before she concluded that people have other ways to protect themselves and "when I pull my bangs in front of my head I feel like I'm protected ... almost like I'm in 3rd grade again." 

In another post from 2019, the Criminal singer opened up about her struggle with self-esteem despite being the most loved pop icon of her time and to date. Alongside a video clip where she's doing several back-strengthening yoga poses, she shared her problem, "Body language is everything! The way you speak to yourself and carry yourself can affect your mood ... I have self-esteem problems so I slouch."

"These poses help me every day become stronger and it's quite fun doing them ... I feel so different every time I do it, cause I'm not used to the feeling of my back being out!!!!" she added. 

Apart from physical issues, Spears has sparked mental health concerns multiple times. Early in her career, while she was still under the conservatorship, her medical status was a growing concern. However, she alleged, "There's obviously a lot of people who don't wish me well," including her father and her team, whom she accused of putting her on medications. 

However, even after her conservatorship ended, sources told Page Six, "Nobody outside the very small conservatorship circle knows what Britney’s medical status really is. If people knew Britney's actual medical status, I think it would reveal that her mental problems are far more severe than people realize."