She did have an emotional and physical breakdown but there was no suicide attempt

Mariah Carey's publicist

She was due to promote a new film and album in the next month - the first fruits of her signing with Virgin Records, which was reported to be the most expensive record deal ever.

Her publicist Cindi Berger denied reports that Carey had attempted suicide by cutting herself.

"She did have an emotional and physical breakdown but there was no suicide attempt," she said.

 Click here to watch Mariah Carey sing Against All Odds on Top Of The Pops

"She did break some dishes and glasses, and she may have stepped on them."

The singer, 31, is best-known for hits I'll Be There, Without You, Fantasy and Open Arms.

She was forced to cancel an appearance at MTV's 20th birthday concert on 1 August, where she was to be the star guest.

Carey has sung with the biggest names in music

The music channel had to create a new finale for the show after Carey's withdrawal.

She had recently been promoting the single Loverboy, from the Glitter soundtrack, in the UK and US.

But it only reached number 12 in Britain and failed to make an impact in America - until her record company dropped the price to 49 cents.

Ms Berger said all promotional duties for Carey's film and album have now been postponed.

"I'm taking it one day at a time, she's getting a little stronger each day," she told BBC News Online.

"Right now, everything is on hold."

Early pressure

Carey had also finished another film, WiseGirls, in which she stars alongside Mira Sorvino.

The star was raised by her mother, a former opera singer and began singing at the age of four.

She began to write songs while she was at school and soon after graduation had broken into the recording industry, making her debut on Columbia Records in 1990.

She was the biggest-selling artist of the 1990s and her single Heartbreaker made her one of the most successful artists ever in 1999, when it became her 14th American number one single, a feat rivalled only by the Beatles (20) and Elvis Presley (17).