10 Disturbing Backstories Behind Your Favourite TV Characters
7. Meredith Grey - Grey's Anatomy
Dr. Merideth Grey has had to deal with some seriously horrific crap since becoming a surgeon at Seattle Grace Hospital, so she hasn't exactly led a charmed life after her upbringing. Most of her family and friends have died, she's nearly drowned, been in a plane crash, and almost died — a lot.
Still, the hell she's gone through as an adult was probably only survivable, thanks to the miserable childhood she somehow endured. Meredith's mother, Ellis, was a brilliant surgeon, and a hero to her, but she had some problems. She carried on an affair with a co-worker and tanked her marriage.
As a result, her father, Thatcher, was effectively removed from her life despite numerous attempts during her childhood to remain a loving father. In one instance, her mother nearly killed herself over a pregnancy, which resulted in a child she gave up for adoption.
To further complicate things, Ellis suffered from early-onset Alzheimer's disease, which forced Merideth to take on the role of parent. Her mother went through abusive anger issues before she was ultimately placed in a nursing home, and after all that, Merideth still managed to put herself through medical school to become a world-famous surgeon, just like her mother.