Britney Spears has sent a message to fans to explain why she had not shared the trauma over her conservatorship sooner.
In her first public statement since her explosive courtroom testimony on Wednesday, the pop superstar said she "pretended like everything was ok" because "I was embarrassed to share what happened to me".
Spears asked a judge to end the conservatorship that controls her life and career, describing it as "abusive".
She also revealed the court-ordered arrangement requires her to use a birth control device and prevents her from marrying boyfriend Sam Asghari.
On Instagram, Spears, 39, shared a quote about the importance of fairy tales and said her upbeat social media posts had given her millions of fans the wrong impression about her life.
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She wrote: "I just want to tell you guys a little secret ... I believe as people we all want the fairy tale life and by the way I've posted ... my life seems to look and be pretty amazing ... I think that's what we all strive for !!!!
"That was one of my mother's best traits ... no matter how shitty a day was when I was younger ... for the sake of me and my siblings she always pretended like everything was ok.
"I'm bringing this to peoples attention because I don't want people to think my life is perfect because IT'S DEFINITELY NOT AT ALL ... and if you have read anything about me in the news this week ... you obviously really know now it's not !!!!"
Spears apologised to fans for putting on a brave face for two years, adding: "I did it because of my pride and I was embarrassed to share what happened to me ... but honestly who doesn't want to capture there Instagram in a fun light !!!!"
The chart-topping singer, who has not performed since 2018, said pretending to be fine on social media has "actually helped".
She wrote: "So I decided to post this quote today because by golly if you're going through hell ... I feel like Instagram has helped me have a cool outlet to share my presence ... existence ... and to simply feel like I matter despite what I was going through and hey it worked ... so I've decided to start reading more fairy tales."
Mr Asghari, Spears's 27-year-old boyfriend, shared a video on Instagram showing the couple on what appeared to be a private plane.
During her dramatic court appearance, Spears said the conservatorship - which she has been under since 2008 after suffering a series of mental breakdowns - forced her to work, comparing it to sex trafficking.
She called on the judge to end it without the need for further medical assessment and criticised her father, Jamie, who has overseen much of her life for the last 13 years.
Spears's legal team must now formally lodge a petition with the court.
