Once known for her spirited personality and sense of humor, talk show host Wendy Williams has been privately dealing with a number of health concerns, including alcohol abuse, as well as a court-ordered guardianship.

Her steady decline in health contributed directly to The Wendy Williams Show getting canceled, a loss that one production source said ultimately “broke her.” Speaking to People, Williams’ family opened up about the “shocking and heartbreaking” experience she’s had in recent years, which has been chronicled in the upcoming Lifetime documentary Where is Wendy Williams?

“We’ve all seen the images over the last few months — and, really, few years — of what has seemed like a spiral for my aunt,” her niece Alex Finnie said. “It was shocking and heartbreaking to see her in this state.”

People reports that the documentary began filming in August 2022 with the expectation that it would chronicle her launching a new podcast, but instead, the documentary shows her struggle with alcoholism, lymphedema, and Grave’s disease.

Sources who worked with her on The Wendy Williams Show noticed that she struggled with drinking, especially when she allegedly began appearing on air while “drunk.”

Co-executive producer Suzanne Bass confessed, “I knew she was struggling. How could I not? As her situation grew worse, she pushed us away.” The show was ultimately canceled in 2022 after Williams took a hiatus to focus on her health.

The documentary stopped filming in April 2023 when Williams was found in her apartment “with her eyes rolled back into her head.” Ever since, she has been in a facility to treat “cognitive issues,” but her family claims that her court-appointed guardian is the only person who can contact her.

“The people who love her cannot see her,” Wendy’s sister, Wanda, said. “I think the big is: How the hell did we get here?”

Wanda also questioned whether this guardianship could be safe for her sister. “How did she go from this aunt or sister that we love and is healthy one minute to this person who’s in and out of the hospital?” she said. “How is that system better than the system the family could put in place? This system is broken.”

Where Is Wendy Williams? premieres on Lifetime Feb. 24 and 25.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.