Ever since she became a star, Britney has been used to fielding all sorts of questions: about her talent, her clothes, and her virginity. But by 2005, it was Britney who was posing the question to the rest of the world:

(from her TV series)
Britney: Can you handle my truth ... Can you? I don't know...

She and her new boyfriend had a reality TV series.

"Britney & Kevin: Chaotic" gave viewers an up-close -- many would say too close -- look inside their lovey-dovey world. It also showcased an edgier, more provocative Britney.

(from TV series)
Britney: The kisses are really good ... the sex is really good!

Michael Musto: There's such a thing as TMI. Too much information. And that may have been what “Chaotic” was peddling.

She even let viewers watch as she went from Miss Spears to Mrs. Federline after roughly five months of courtship.

But while Britney's second trip to the altar was big news in the press, it didn't please many fans. They saw her new husband as nothing more than a gold-digger. Britney, on the other hand, saw Kevin as the first person in a long time who didn't want to control her.

Vanessa: And he didn't care if she didn't wear shoes into the gas station bathroom. Or, you know, just walked around looking like crap and went to Starbucks.

Besides, Britney had other things on her mind. Soon after the marriage, she told everyone she was pregnant. It was unmistakable in her music video for "Someday (I Will Understand).”

And when she gave birth to Sean Preston, the new mom proudly posed with baby and husband for People magazine. Within months of the birth, there more good news that she revealed on the Late Show with David Letterman.

She was pregnant again. And she was signaling to the media an eagerness to turn the spotlight over to her husband Kevin. He was producing his first rap CD. The trouble was the public would have none of it.

Joe Levy: You can't say how the Kevin Federline album was received. Nobody bothered to receive it. The world sent it back. I mean, nobody cared.

What they did care about was Britney -- and her marriage. It seemed tabloids couldn't wait to report on her frustration with K-Fed, his partying and laziness. Britney denied it all. And then, in the blink of the camera's eye, the attention turned from marriage to motherhood. A fateful decision behind the wheel put Britney in the hot seat.

On Feb, 6, 2006, Britney was photographed driving with Sean Preston on her lap. She later explained she had been trying to get her son quickly out of the way of the paparazzi who'd been hounding her. Few were buying the excuse. Her maternal instincts had already become a national punch line.

(from "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno")
Jay Leno: But in her defense, the baby had to sit on her lap because her husband Kevin was asleep in the child seat.

For the tabloids, it was now all-Britney-all-the-time. Routine accidents in childrearing became exhibit "A" in the case against mother Britney. When her son fell from his highchair, the incident made headline news. When Britney slipped in the street holding her baby, the cameras went crazy.

Even the birth of her second son didn't win her much empathy. But two months later something else did. It was the kind of news tabloids had been predicting, even hoping for: she was divorcing her husband Kevin Federline. In turn, he announced he would fight for custody of their two children.

Michael Musto: I never trusted him. I just thought he was a user from day one. I mean, talk about losing 200 pounds that you didn't need.

For a moment Britney ceased to be a tabloid target.

Joe Levy: The story seemed to be turning around. The momentum was, hey, Britney Spears is changing her life and going back to work.

She was going back to work -- and out to party, too. Few ardent fans might have blamed her for celebrating her break with Kevin. And yet, without the steadying hand of matrimony, Britney was like a wild child unleashed. Overnight, it seemed, she had found a new friend. And it wasn’t not just any old gal pal, either.

Joe Levy: Paris Hilton. She hooked up with Paris Hilton. Boy, the story changed. It was no longer that Britney is working. It was Britney is partying. And without underwear.

The images said it all: there was the former Mouseketeer almost naked in public . There she was appearing drunk, and there she was just after throwing up. Now the press had to wonder: was the partying just a publicity stunt, or had her drinking become a personal demon?

Joe Levy: How can things possibly get worse? Well, she could pass out in the middle of a nightclub. She could throw-up in public. Could it get much worse? Oh, yes, actually it could.

It got so bad Britney's own mother was reportedly worried for her daughter's safety. Britney's ex went a step further, allegedly issuing an ultimatum in 2007: clean up, stay sober or risk never seeing your children.

Finally, the woman who had stopped taking orders from others seemed to get the message -- sort of. Britney checked into an exclusive Caribbean rehab center in mid-February, but the next day she checked out and flew home.

She headed right to a hair salon. As paparazzi peered through the window into the salon, they could hardly believe what they were seeing: Britney taking a razor to her hair. Suddenly, the boozy Britney story didn't seem that funny.

Michael Musto: I think when she shaved her head that's when people started going, "This might not be cute anymore."

Britney once again checked into rehab and -- once again -- stayed only a single night. Afterwards, she headed to Kevin Federline's to see her kids. But when no one answered the door, her fury boiled over -- and into the side of a car.

Furious with her ex-husband, furious with her mother, Britney was now alone with her anger -- and the photographers. She was being tailed by them 24/7. What outrageous exploit would she serve up next? Clearly, America’s pop princess had taken a hard fall. But she was about to rise again, this time as the wild-eyed star in a very gritty brand of reality TV.

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