Self-proclaimed "industry therapist" Rebecca Roy says mentally unwell male stars have it easy compared with their female counterparts. I don't for a minute buy her argument that Heath Ledger's death "is being treated with kid gloves"; surely as a denizen of Beverly Hills she's heard that, for instance, "Entertainment Tonight" recently planned to air footage of the actor admitting to past heavy drug use. (The program pulled the video at the last minute after several A-listers brought pressure to bear.) But pick out the Hollywood hyperbole and shameless self-promotion, and she makes a decent point:

Britney Spears is afforded no privacy at all in dealing with her issues. It's as if there are jackals at the gate just waiting for her to commit suicide. It's a travesty. Not only do the women have to deal with an impossibly high body image standard, but they are savagely attacked when they don't meet expectations on that front. Add this pressure to perhaps a pre-existing mental disorder and you have the makings of a very tortured soul.

(Via Jezebel)