Our thoughts are with the pop star at this difficult time.
Singer Britney Spears has shared in an Instagram post that she has suffered a miscarriage.
Trigger warning: discusses themes of miscarriage and baby loss.
Posting to her 41.2 million followers, she announced that the "miracle baby" her and fiancé Sam Asghari had been expecting had sadly been lost.
The caption read: “We are grateful for what we have in the process of expanding our beautiful family. Thank you for your support.”
In the image itself - which saw text written on a pink fluffy background - the couple wrote: “It is with our deepest sadness we have to announce that we have lost our miracle baby early in the pregnancy."
"This is a devastating time for any parent. Perhaps we should have waited to announce until we were further along however we were overly excited to share the good news. our love for each other is our strength."
"We will continue trying to expand our beautiful family. We are grateful for all of your support. We kindly ask for privacy during this difficult moment.”
Signing off, they penned the note from both Britney and Sam.
The couple had announced that they were expecting a child around five weeks ago.
It's been a year of highs and lows for the Toxic singer - not only did she recently get engaged, but she was also released from her conservatorship after nearly fourteen years under the control of her father, Jamie Spears.
One of her biggest complaints during her conservatorship was being "forced" to stay on birth control, meaning she was unable to conceive - making this "miracle baby" even more significant.
It is thought that she discovered she was pregnant while on holiday in Cancun, where she had joked with Sam about having a food baby.
TMZ has reported that Britney and Sam have returned to Cancun this week to deal with their grief privately. Spears is thought to have said: “Sam and I decided to get away to clear our minds and focus on the blessings we have, each other and my boys.”
Britney has two sons from her last marriage to Kevin Federline, Sean, who is now 16, and Jayden, who is now 15.
Our thoughts are with the couple at this time and anyone who has experienced miscarriage or baby loss.
If you yourself have been affected by the themes mentioned in this article, know that you are not alone. Tommy's is the largest UK pregnancy and baby loss charity, funding research into stillbirth, premature birth and miscarriage. Head to tommys.org for expert help and support.
