We're learning more about Katie Meyer, the young, bright Stanford University soccer star who took her own life.
On Friday morning, Katie's parents appeared on Today. The grieving parents opened up about the loss of their daughter. They also shared their thoughts on what they believe may have shaped Katie's thoughts in her final days.
Katie's mom, Gina Meyer, confirmed the report that her daughter took her own life. "The last couple days are like a parent's worst nightmare and you don't wake up from it. So it's just horrific."
But she and her husband also spoke about some potential disciplinary actions from the university — something that they believe was hanging over Katie's head.
Katie's father, Steven, said that before his daughter died, she "was defending a teammate on campus over an incident and the repercussions of her defending that teammate (were possibly resulting in disciplinary action)." It's something her parents knew was causing Katie stress. But it may have been more overwhelming than they knew.
Stanford University told Today in a statement, "We are not able to share information about confidential student disciplinary matters. We as a university community continue to grieve with Katie's family and cherish our memories of her."
The statement continued, "Our entire community is devastated by Katie's death, and we share our deepest condolences with Katie's family and everyone who knew her at Stanford, across the country and around the world.
"Katie touched so many lives."
Katie's parents can't be sure of exactly what was weighing on Katie leading up to her final days. But they said that she had been getting letters about the potential disciplinary action. They said that the most recent correspondence "was kind of the final letter that there was going to be a trial or some kind of something."
Katie's parents are clearly deep in their grief. Sadly, they may never know for sure exactly what their daughter's thought process was before taking her life. It seems that right now, they are just desperate for some answers.
"This is the only thing that we can come up with that triggered something," her mother said. "There is anxiety and there is stress to be perfect, to be the best, to be No. 1."
During the interview, Gina had on her daughter's red sweatshirt, which she said made her feel close to her late daughter. "I know it's going to sound crazy, but every mom is going to understand this, but when you smell it, it smells her, it smells like Katie, just her scent," she said.
The grieving mom also said that she and her husband are "heartbroken." She added that they are "struggling" to know what happened and why it happened.
Note: If you or any of your loved ones are struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can always reach out to the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline by calling 1-800-273-8255. They are available 24/7 by phone or online chat.
