In the aftermath of Christmas celebrations, pop star Britney Spears shared a photo of a Christmas tree on Instagram, though her message seemed far from festive.

In the caption, the singer wrote a seemingly sarcastic note addressed to her family.

“Merry late Christmas to my beautiful family who have never disrespected me, harmed me, or done anything completely unacceptable, causing unbelievable trauma that can’t be undone,” Spears, 44, expressed in her post.

She continued, “To my dear sweet innocent family… so sorry I was busy this Christmas, but I promise to surprise you soon. I can’t wait.”

The Daily Mail reports that Spears’ family is taken aback by the sharp tone of her post. They suspect it may be linked to her eldest son, Sean Preston Federline, 20, choosing to spend Christmas with them rather than his mother. Sean was seen with Spears’ relatives in a photo shared by her sister, Jamie Lynn Spears.

Family members expressed their distress to the Daily Mail, revealing that they felt hurt by the message, especially as they claim Spears has been unresponsive to their attempts to reach out for several months.

Jamie Lynn Spears, 34, (center) posted a carousel of highlights from the family’s celebration captioned, ‘Merry CHRISTMAS.’ In addition to her nephew (second from right), she was joined by husband Jamie Watson (left), daughters Ivey, 7, (front) and Maddie, 17, (second from left) and mom Lynne, 70 (right)

Spears posted a pointed message to her family on Instagram (pictured)

“It felt like a punch to the gut,” a relative from Louisiana confided. “It was painful and unexpected, particularly during the holiday season.”

‘I know it hurt both Jamie Lynn and Lynne the most. They thought things were getting better with her, that maybe there was some reconciliation happening. So to be put on blast like that was a surprise, especially when they didn’t feel that anything bad happened.’ 

Another family member echoed the statement.

‘It just hurts,’ our second source said. ‘But it is what it is. I’m sorry she feels that way, but she has everyone’s number and can pick up the phone and talk to anyone in the family, rather than posting something like that for the public to see and have an opinion about.’ 

Jamie Lynn, 34, posted a carousel of highlights from the family’s celebration captioned, ‘Merry CHRISTMAS.’ In addition to her nephew, she was joined by husband Jamie Watson, daughters Ivey, seven, and Maddie, 17, and mom Lynne, 70. 

Family members believe Spears was angry that her son opted to spend Christmas with Jamie Lynn’s family rather than returning to California to spend time with his mom and brother, Jayden James Federline, 19.

‘Sean is close with his cousins, and wanted to see them,’ said the first relative. ‘He was in Louisiana anyway because of another commitment, so it just made sense for him to spend time with his grandmother, aunt and extended family. That shouldn’t be too controversial.’  

Spears has had a highly publicized and contentious relationship with her family members for years following her 13-year conservatorship that ended in November 2021. Family members have said she only communicates with them occasionally and that the conversations are often tense. 

‘She reaches out when she wants to, and she keeps her distance when she wants to,’ said the second family member. ‘And she often chooses to make her point publicly rather than privately.’ 

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Spears for comment. 

Amid the rollout of her ex-husband Kevin Federline’s memoir in October, Spears took to Instagram to accuse him of ‘gaslighting’ her, calling it ‘hurtful and exhausting.’ She also said she felt ‘demoralized’ about the relationship with her sons, writing, ‘I have always pleaded and screamed to have a life with my boys.’ 

She claimed she had seen one of her sons for only ’45 minutes in the past five years.’

Amid the rollout of her ex-husband Kevin Federline’s (right) memoir earlier this year, Spears (left) took to Instagram to accuse him of ‘gaslighting’ her

Spears with her two sons, Jayden James and Sean Preston, in 2013

Jayden James (right) spent Christmas with Spears (left)

Federline, 47, previously told the Daily Mail that Spears had seen her sons ‘within the last year,’ but said that, while the communication between them was ‘pretty open,’ it is ‘just not what it should be.’

‘That’s a fluid situation – something that needs work,’ he said. ‘And there’s a lot to try to be built on right there. My sons are adults now, so, I mean, they have to really figure out what they’re trying to do with that situation… I don’t want them living under the shadow of all of this.’

Spears was married to Federline for nearly three years, ending in 2007, and had limited contact with their two sons during her conservatorship. Jayden James, however, spent Christmas with the pop star after the pair seemingly reconciled over the last year.

Britney’s family, however, previously voiced concerns about the star’s wellbeing after footage exclusively published by the Daily Mail showed the singer appearing to drive dangerously, swerving her car into the wrong lane and accelerating sharply.

At the time, insiders told the Daily Mail that her family was holding crisis talks, with one source calling for her to go back under a conservatorship.

‘It’s terrifying,’ another source said at the time. ‘So there’s a lot of talk about what to do, if anything. How can we protect her from herself.’ 

But it appears her family is still hopeful that there will be some sort of reconciliation.

While one family member said it was ‘good’ for Sean Preston to be in Louisiana for the holidays, he will be headed back to California for New Years. As for Spears, she has an open invite down south, the source added.

‘Britney knows she’s always welcome to spend time with everyone,’ the source said. ‘That door is always open, and will always stay open, no matter what happens.’