The Story
Britney Spears was hospitalized at UCLA Medical Center for a psychiatric hold early Thursday morning, after being transported by ambulance from her Studio City home around 1 a.m.
An LAPD source tells PEOPLE: "Spears was escorted by police and is on her way to get help."
The singer, 26, was transported to UCLA for treatment and evaluation during a 72-hour emergency hold, known as a 5150.
"She went willingly. It was like something in her heart was telling her she should go. She knew something was wrong," confidant Sam Lutfi tells PEOPLE.
Police or a mental health professional can request one if a person is deemed to be a danger to herself or others. (Spears was held at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on such an order earlier this month, following her Jan. 3 custody standoff with police.)
Spears's mother, Lynne – who's in the midst of a tense reunion with her daughter – friend Alli Sims and Lutfi were all inside the gated mansion when police and the fire department arrived.
What brought on the hospitalization? "She was driving around her neighborhood like a mad-woman," says a Spears family source. "Britney has been prescribed medication which she refuses to take. This is just another sad, sad evening."
Lutfi and Spears's father, Jamie, arrived at the hospital shortly after the singer. Her mother was later spotted leaving the Summit home with Spears's photographer beau, Adnan Ghalib, in the backseat.
Earlier in the night, Internet rumors claimed that the singer had attempted suicide, but Lutfi and Sims both denied those claims to PEOPLE.
Since the January standoff, Spears has been stripped of visitation rights for her two sons Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1. Two sources have said she suffers from a psychological disease, with one source saying, "there is no question she is bipolar... she's had manic episodes for years."
As last night's incident unfolded, a Spears source told PEOPLE simply, "Pray, please."
Britney Spears's latest trip to the hospital appears to be turning out much differently this time: The pop star went willingly, and she's "more comfortable" receiving medical care – even making a joke about her second trip, a source close to the pop star tells PEOPLE.
"She'll be in there for at least 72 hours getting evaluated. She might even stay longer," says the source. "She's more comforable this time, she came into the waiting area, had a cigarette, made a joke about being there again. But who knows what will happen. All we can hope for is that she gets better."
Even the logistics in getting her help and getting her to the hospital were planned better – and far in advance, according to the source.
"Something like this has been in the works since the [last trip to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center]. She has been seeing her psychiatrist every day," the source says. "No one thought this would happen this soon, but it was clear if she stayed up for more than three days she'd have to get sent, since that could cause real damage. The last time she slept was Saturday."
Adds the source: "The motorcade and everything was planned, it was already in the works to have them block off the road and airspace. It worked out perfectly."
UPDATE: Lynne Wants to Take Britney Home to Lousiana
Britney Spears’ mother, Lynne, is planning to try and take her daughter home to Louisiana.
Following last night’s intervention and subsequent hospitalization, Lynne has decided that she is taking Britney out of L.A. as soon as she’s released from UCLA Medical Center. “Lynne is extremely concerned for her daughter and would like to take Britney back home to Louisiana and get her out of Hollywood,” Britney’s lawyer Michael Flanagan told PageSix.com exclusively.
Lynne feels that the biggest problem facing Britney's recovery is the circle of friends she’s become involved with and Lynne desperately wants to extricate her daughter from that. “Brit has an amazing support system in Louisiana,” Flanagan says, reinforcing the belief that Britney simply can't get the help she needs while she remains in L.A. “Lynn was holding up reasonably well, but her first priority and concern right now is with her daughter and helping her through this very tough situation that she is in.”
But as we’ve seen with Brit before, until she decides to make a change there is nothing anyone — not even her mother — can do to force her hand.
UPDATE: Lynne (mother) & Bryan(brother) leaving the Hospital
After an extremely long and trying night, Lynne Spears finally left her daughter's side at 5:26am this morning.
Brit's family, who have largely been estranged from the pop princess until recently, rallied around their troubled daughter, who was taken to the UCLA Medical Center early this morning around 1am.
Lynne was seen exiting the hospital just a few hours ago, with son Bryan by her side.
No word on whether or not Jamie Lynn plans on joining the rest of the family in Los Angeles.
UPDATE:What Can Britney Expect Over The Next Few Days?
X17online spoke to a former UCLA psych ward resident, who's painted a grim picture of what Britney Spears will be going through at the medical center over the next few days.
According to the source:
# Britney will be held for at least 72 hours, and up to 14 days if the LA County officer deems her a danger to herself and others.
# Britney will be supervised around the clock by nurses and security, unable to even bathe by herself.
# Over the first few days, Britney will be encouraged to sleep as much as possible, and will be administered sleeping pills, as well as Ativan (an anti-anxiety medication) to help her do so. Meds are doled out three times a day.
# Visitors are allowed to come one hour a day during the week, between 6:30 and 7:30, but on the weekends the stay is extended from 1-3. Visitors are allowed to bring food (although our source says UCLA's food is pretty decent!) but they cannot keep it or any other contraband (sharp objects, razors, etc.) in their rooms.
# The psych ward consists of two wings, with 10 rooms each. Although there are 2 beds per room, it's doubtful that Britney is sharing with anyone. None of the rooms have televisions, although there is a tv in the common area.
# The patients are divided into two categories: addicts and bi-polars, with the highest risk patients restrained by wristbands in their beds.
# Our source said that most of the patients are from 18-50 years old, with at least half of the residents were considered high risk, and therefore restrained.
# The ward is an extremely "tough" environment to live in, with patients getting quite agitated and screams being heard all hours of the night. Our source said there were also many fights that broke out in the common area, due to general paranoia, not to mention the fact that many patients are detoxing.
# After the first few days, Britney will most likely be put on Depakote Seroquel and Lithium for the bi-polar, and Ativan for anti-anxiety.
# A doctor will pay Britney a visit once a day, asking her questions like "are you able to sleep?" "Are you hearing voices?" "Are you paranoid?" "Do you feel like harming yourself?" "Do you think about committing suicide?"
# Britney will not be allowed outside during the first 72 hours, after that, she'll be allowed to visit an outdoor court for one hour a day, at 3pm.
# There are several different groups to keep patients busy throughout the day, including Arts & Crafts, as well as a group called "Journal", where patients are encouraged to read the newspapers to keep up on current events and life on the outside.
# She's allowed to be in her own clothes, with a green, hospital issue robe worn on top, and nothing else but a wristband that contains her social security number and her date of admittance.
It sounds like an extremely tough environment, but probably the best thing for Britney at the moment. Mariah Carey showed drastic improvement after her month-long stay back in 2001!
Get Well, brit! We know you're strong.