Dr. Phil regrets Spears incident

Dr. Phil is admitting he made a mistake. According to www.thecelebritycafe.com the popular TV show host and non-practicing psychiatrist has been caught up in a recent controversy over his behavior with the Spears family, and particularly his behavior with regards to Britney's alleged breakdown.

On Thursday, McGraw announced his regret to a studio audience while filming a show set to air on Monday, reports USA Today.

The article in USA Today quoted Dr. Phil as acknowledging that his actions and words toward Spears were not "helpful to the situation."

USA Today reports that McGraw went on to hypothesize what he would have done, had he known now the consequences of his actions towards Spears: "I definitely think if I had it to do over again, I probably wouldn't make any statement at all. Period."

In an exclusive interview later with USA Today, McGraw explained why he decided to cancel the shows he had planned to do on Spears, outlining her need for help: "There was so much noise. … I decided this isn't the time to do it."

Immediately after the hospital visit, McGraw was criticized by some for visiting Spears and then holding a press conference, and accused of doing it all as a ratings stunt.

Dr. Phil recently visited Britney Spears during her last hospital visit at Cedars Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

While there, Dr. Phil McGraw gave a press conference, stressing Spears' dire need for medical and psychological attention.

McGraw soon came after fire when it was questioned whether or not he should have spoken publicly about Spears' condition, and whether in fact that had violated any patient-doctor confidentiality.

Another dimension to the story is that McGraw is no longer a practicing psychiatrist, in a legal sense.