The Office: 10 Saddest Things About Meredith

Meredith Palmer was the mischievous and outlandish supplier relations representative for Dunder Mifflin in The Office. She didn't have large storylines like Pam or Michael but viewers saw glimpses of her life as the series went on for nine seasons. Unlike the other ladies at the office, Meredith was unpolished and a tad ruthless. Her love of drinking and promiscuity became part of her reputation.

Under Meredith's thick skin and careless facade has to be a woman with goals and responsibility. It's hard not to feel sad for Meredith when fans who are rewatching the series see all of the horrible things she's dealt with in and out of the office.

10 Her Addiction

It becomes obvious early on that Meredith appears to have an alcohol addiction. The camera crew caught her making a mixed drink in the kitchen and sipping it at her desk on Valentine's Day, she always drank at the office parties, and she was always down for a beer at Poor Richards.

Everyone else noticed her drinking habits, including Meredith. She told Jan in "Boys and Girls: that one of her goals in five years was to be sober. But by season 9, Meredith was still drinking.

9 Her Relationship With Her Kids

Although fans have only seen her son "Jakey," Meredith is the mother of two kids. She also has a daughter named Wendy but it would appear that she doesn't have a relationship with her. In the webisode "The Accountants: Meredith," she called Wendy "the good one" who lived with her father.

Meredith also has a strained relationship with her son, Jake. He got into trouble at school, was a tyrant when he came to visit the office, and later became a stripper — which he never told his mom about until he danced at Angela's bachelorette party.

8 She Was Brought To Rehab Against Her Will

In "Moroccan Christmas," Meredith once again had too much to drink at the office's Christmas party. Thanks to the theme of the party, Meredith accidentally lit her hair on fire but was too drunk to notice. It was at that point that everyone realized how much of a problem Meredith had.

Michael thought it would be helpful to drive Meredith to rehab but what he didn't realize was that a person can't force another person to go to rehab. They have to go willingly and want the help. Regardless, Michael fooled Meredith into going to a bar and took her to rehab instead. The entire ordeal was traumatizing and wildly inappropriate.

7 Did The Documentary Crew Do Her Dirty?

In the ninth season, the Scranton branch was excited to see the final product of their documentary. They had been filmed for the past nine years and had no idea what the crew got on camera and what they would even show.

In a talking head, Meredith told the camera crew that she hoped she was shown in a good light because she had "been on [her] best behavior for nine years." She was apparently in school for the first seven seasons getting her Ph. D. in school psychology! So, either the film crew only filmed her worst moments to make her look a certain way on camera or Meredith is delusional when it comes to "good behavior."

6 Does Meredith Know Her Worth?

In "Business Ethics," Holly and Michael have a meeting about ethics and morals in the workplace. When Micahel tells the office to speak up about their unethical behavior in the workplace, Meredith chimes in. For six years, she was in an intimate relationship with a supplier as a way to get discounts on office supplies and gift cards for Outback Steakhouse...  Meredith has also made questionable comments about men only liking "the back" of her.

It's hard not to wonder if Meredith knows her worth or if she has self-confidence when it comes to intimacy.

5 She Got Rabies... Twice

In "Business School," there's a bat loose in the office and Dwight is on a mission to kill it. At the end of the day, the bat flies towards Meredith's head and Dwight traps the two in a plastic bag. Shortly after this incident, Meredith was hospitalized where she found out that she had rabies.

She was bitten by a bat and a raccoon on two separate occasions. Where exactly does Meredith live, and what does she do in her free time to be bitten by so many wild animals?

4 The Lice Debacle

When Jim was working in Philadelphia, Pam was overworked and exhausted acting as a single mother. Things only got worse when Cece brought lice home from school. Pam tried keeping the lice story under wraps at work but when Meredith started scratching her head, Pam knew she just infected the office.

Instead of being upfront and telling the office that she was the lice carrier, Pam let people think it was Meredith. Meredith even shaved her head! She was ostracized by the office and judged, which wasn't fair. If it wasn't for Pam's mom leaving a voicemail regarding the lice situation, Meredith wouldn't have ever been forgiven.

3 Michael Violated Her Privacy

Meredith was very open with her sexuality and didn't mind showing off her body. She slept with Creed, the Hammermill representative, a former warehouse worker, and she tried sleeping with Michael and Brian, the boom operator.

After a Christmas party Meredith showed up in Michael's office and took off her shirt. Michael gasped but took a picture anyway. In later episodes, Meredith told everyone at Michael's roast that Michael ended up posting the picture of Meredith's chest on the office bulletin board and wrote "Gross" underneath.  There aren't enough words in the dictionary to say how wrong this is — especially in an office setting.

2 Her Sister Died

When Andy became the regional manager, he realized how many useless things his employees come to him for. For Halloween, both Kelly and Meredith were annoyed with each other when they had the same Halloween costume: Kate Middleton, Duchess of Cambridge on her wedding day.

Meredith told Kelly and Andy that she deserved to dress as Kate because she was at the wedding. Confused, Andy reminded her that she was at her sister's funeral during the week of the royal wedding. And shockingly, Meredith admitted that she didn't go to it. So, not only did her sister die but she skipped the funeral.

1 She's Been Attacked At The Office More Than Once

Meredith has thick skin but she's been attacked far too many times at work. She was run over in the company parking lot by her boss, she was trapped in a bag with a bat thanks to Dwight, Pam threw a football at her head, she was lit on fire... the list doesn't seem to end.

NEXT: The Office's 10 Cringiest Episodes, Ranked