Heartbroken mum, Lynne Spears, has asked if her troubled daughter's career was worth it. Friends of devastated Lynne appeared on U.S. TV last night to defend her parenting skills. Friend Joy Moore told U.S. show Access Hollywood.

"She's portrayed as a bad mother, a mother that doesn't care, a mother interested in money. She saw great talent in Britney and she had these huge, big dreams and I think she looks back now and she wonders, you know, 'Was all this worth it?'"

In an exclusive interview, those closest to Britney's mother revealed what Lynne's biggest fears were for her troubled daughter - currently under 24-hour observation in a Los Angeles psychiatric ward. Joe Moore added further:

"The woman Lynne deals with now is not the daughter that left here six or seven years ago. Whether that's a mental thing, despair, depression, I don't know. And Lynne's not sure either, but she wants someone to find out and she wants someone to get her daughter back."

According to the family insiders Lynne feels hopeful about finding an effective treatment after Britney's second involuntary commitment. But admits she has been estranged from her daughter for months and felt powerless not being able to get Britney into treatment sooner. Britney's mother also believes that Friday's decision by the courts to grant temporary control of Britney's assets to her father, Jamie Spears, is a positive one. Insider Kelly Milton reveals:

"Lynne said, 'She's not doing well,' and she said, 'I just don't know what's going to happen. She just asked me to pray for her. They've tried interventions and they've tried to seek outside assistance from different facilities. Her hope has been for a long time that Britney would get the help that she needs and it's hard when your hands are tied and it's an adult and she doesn't want help. You know, I mean, Lynne's hands have been tied."

The family also placed a temporary restraining order against her ever-present friend, Sam Lutfi, and Britney's paparazzi boy toy, Adnan Ghalib, could be next.

"The people Britney is involved with, they each have their own little stake in it, you know I don't think any of them care what happens to Britney ultimately. I think it's, 'What am I going to get out of this?' And most of those people want to keep her from her mother because they feel like her mother might intervene and mess this little plan up. If Britney's thinking clearly, I might not get my piece."

Pictures by Westley Hargrave / Splash News / Steve Dennet / Hot Shots Worldwide / Jason Winslow / Marsaili McGrath / London Entertainment / Ciao Hollywood