Britney Spears’ aunt Chanda McGovern says that her family fears they will “turn on the TV and find out she is dead.”

McGovern told the British newspaper The Sun that she’s worried Spears’ self-destruction is nearing a breaking point.

“We are very worried that things are going to spiral out of control,” says McGovern, who predicted that “whether it be intentionally or accidental, there may be a drug overdose.”

She added: “We are worried about suicidal tendencies in her.”

Chanda married Spears’ uncle 14 years ago. At the time, an 11-year-old Britney sang at the wedding ceremony.

McGovern confessed that her family has been pleading for her to take a break from L.A. and come back to her hometown of Kentwood, Louisiana.

“She has not got a backbone — a family member to help her,” she says. “Her mother was always her backbone. Since they’ve fallen out everything has gone to hell.”

McGovern says she wasn’t surprised that an L.A. judge handed custody of Spears’ sons over to Kevin Federline on Monday.

“The kids came second and her party life came first so it really wasn’t a shock that the kids have been taken away from her.”

The mother-of-three even expressed disapproval over her 25-year-old niece’s choice of undergarments – or lack thereof. “Not wearing panties is not something a true southern girl would do.”

She concluded: “You just want to reach out and grab her and hug her and tell her you love her. I want to knock some sense into her and say, ‘Britney — wake up!’”