In a heartbreaking Instagram post over the weekend, Britney Spears and her fiancé, Sam Asghari, shared that Britney suffered a miscarriage.

“It is with our deepest sadness we have to announce that we lost our miracle baby early in the pregnancy,” Spears wrote. “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.”

Britney announced the news of her pregnancy in April:

“I lost so much weight to go on my Maui trip only to gain it back … I thought ‘Geez … what happened to my stomach ???’ My husband said ‘No you’re food pregnant silly !!!’ So I got a pregnancy test … and uhhhhh well … I am having a baby,” she wrote on Instagram.

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In Saturday’s devastating announcement, Britney and Sam say they announced the pregnancy news early out of excitement. While many parents tend to wait after the 12-week mark to share the news of their pregnancies, many others don’t wait.

Because a majority of miscarriages occur within the first 12 weeks, the risk of pregnancy loss after 12 weeks drops dramatically, to between 3% and 4%. After 20 weeks, the risk is roughly 1 in 160 (or 0.6%)

Personally, I chose to tell our closest friends and relatives about both of my pregnancies right after getting that big fat positive. I had someone to share my joy with, but also knew I had a support system in case of a miscarriage. I did suffer pregnancy loss in between both of my children, and I was extremely grateful for the support at that time.

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While many, many fans and fellow celebrities shared their sympathy and support to Britney, her fiancé shared a sweet and hopeful message amid the sorrow of the announcement:

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Britney, who is mom to Sean Preston, 16, and Jayden James, 15, says she still plans on expanding her family with her fiancé.

“Our love for each other is our strength,” the couple writes. “We will continue trying to expand our beautiful family. We are grateful for all the support. We kindly ask for privacy during this difficult moment.”

Sending love and light to Britney, who deserves her freedom and her space at this time and always.