NEW YORK – Lynne Spears had "no control" while her pop star daughter Britney was having a public meltdown earlier this year and her 16-year-old daughter Jamie Lynn was pregnant, she told the "Today" show Wednesday while promoting her new book, “Through the Storm: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World."
"It was so crazy at that time. ... We were just trying to do what we could do at that moment, at that time. We were praying very hard. We had no control over what was happening. We were making phone calls; we were trying to get through. ... I said, if you see my behind going over the wall at the Summit [where Britney lives], it’s my last drastic measure."
She said Britney's rise to fame — "17 paparazzi assigned to her 24/7" — was added to "heartache" and "the mixture's just not healthy."
And although she blames herself, she says, "Britney pushed me."
As for her other show-biz daughter, Jamie Lynn, becoming pregnant last year at age 16, Lynne says Jamie Lynn told her in a note.
“It said she was pregnant, and everything was going to be OK. She was going to raise it ... I thought it was a joke. I was waiting for the punch line,” Lynne said.
“I was in shock. I think I was just truly in shock, and then I started to cry. And she started consoling me at that point.”
Back to Britney, Lynne says her elder daughter is "fine."
“She’s strong,” Lynne said. “She’s resilient. She’s had some big bumps in the road, but Britney’s fine. Britney is headed to the top once again. I have no fears about Britney.”
Spears is due to release a new album in December, on her 27th birthday.
"Circus" is set for release Dec. 2, a little over a year after she released last November's "Blackout," which was perhaps her most critically acclaimed CD, but came during her infamous year of erratic behavior, rehab, custody battles and at least one hospitalization. She barely promoted it, and the album — though it was certified platinum — was one of her least successful.
But these days, Spears has been in the spotlight for all the right reasons. She won three MTV Video Music Awards for her clip "Piece of Me" and appeared on the Sept. 7 awards show looking fit and stunning, a reversal of her disheveled, widely panned appearance in 2007. She also drew praise for her guest appearances on CBS' "How I Met Your Mother."
Spears' life seems to have rebounded after her father, James Spears, went to court and took control of her personal and professional life as her conservator. She also resolved her custody battle with former husband Kevin Federline, with Federline retaining custody of their two young sons and Spears receiving visitation rights.
Among the producers on Spears' new CD are Nate "Danja" Hills and Max Martin, who produced some of her biggest hits, including her first, "Baby One More Time." The first single, "Womanizer," will be released to radio Sept. 22, her record label, Jive/Zomba, announced Monday.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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