What is wrong with my sister?

I feel very weird asking this question on a website, and I'm probably going to get answers like 'No, you need mental help,' or 'It's none of your business,' but this is my sister, and my sister would do the same for me if I were in the same predicament. For her sake, I'm going to change all names, my sister's name will be 'Vicki.' This will be long, bare with me.

Well, all I have to start out with is that she is an alcoholic, and was addicted to marijuana in her younger years. She will be 50 in December. She got married and had kids, and really straightened her life up (even including her spiritual life, which is good for her mentally because it kept her in line). She went to counseling, she went to Alcoholics Anonymous, and for about 9 years, she was sober, I'll get more into the 'was' part later.

About two years ago, she started a diet and exercise regimen. She was considered obese, not freakishly obese. She was faithful with it, and I was really proud of her. Then, she really started to drop the weight, and I started to worry. In Summer of 2010, she started to regress back into her younger years, behavior wise. I talked with her about it, and she expressed her regrets, and I really thought she was going to get back on track. She did the exact opposite. In August of 2010, she caught her husband watching porn. She was devastated for a few months, and that's when she started to drop the weight like it was going out of style.

She really started to regress in Fall of 2010, and in October, she drank alcoholic mouth wash. Her daughter, my niece, was only 15, and she had to stay with her mother all day, send her brother to school, because she had to monitor Vicki. Vicki started saying how hopeless she was, and how lonely she was. She started flirting with other men she didn't know, including men she met on Facebook.

She continued to drop the weight, and continued to have drinking episodes, and continued to regress into depression. She became really influenced by our sister in law, Angel, and Angel keeps encouraging her weight loss and drinking. I cut off contact with her because I'm afraid I'll say the wrong thing. One day, her husband finally put his foot down when she was drinking, and she ran away for a few hours. Finally, in Spring, she really started to present regrets, and started to wake up. She wasn't done, though. Over summer, she still showed depression, and still dropped the weight. All she does is exercise now, and I know that it isn't good for you to exercise 24/7. She got extremely far away from her spiritual life. She's getting worse again, she started drinking again, and she is acting completely reckless. She is really reminding me of a suicidal teen. Her daughter is acting reckless, and her son is turning into a troublesome child. Her husband does not express any care for the situation anymore, he seems to be benefiting from it.

Should I get her mental help? It's a hard decision, our mother told me these exact words 'The only thing that will wake her up is if something happens to one of the kids, by then it'll be too late anyway.' She expressed that she is afraid of losing Vicki if she puts a foot up her hind end. Everyone else is scared of doing something for her, and I feel that I'm the only one with the guts to do something. Should I get her mental help?

I think the weight loss problem aside, it sounds like she needs to re-address her alcohol issues. Is there an AA or other church or counseling group that has helped her in the past? Could you encourage her to return there? Even offer to go with her, to show support?
Sometimes when people really are overweight, they get so much encouragement and support to lose weight, that it becomes hard to know when to stop. That may be part of what is going on with your sister.
Whatever the reason, it sounds like she needs some help for her health, and the well being of her family. Maybe you could research some ways for her to get help in the area where she lives? It's important for you to encourage her in that direction, but remember it is up to her. She is the one who must choose to change her behavior, not you. Don't take that burden on yourself.
Thank you for sharing! I wish the best for both of you!
Please post an update to let us know how you are doing.

She has to hit bottom regardless of what you say or do. In the end it's her decision.