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Nebraska standout volleyball player Harper Murray has been through a lot over the past few months. She was sentenced this summer for driving under the influence, and has been open about working on her mental health since.

Now, the 19-year-old's team is gearing up to take on the University of Dayton in the NCAA playoffs.

If you've missed Harper's backstory, it's understandable to have questions about why so many people are paying attention to her mental health journey right now. Here's what she's shared about her experiences, plus how she's doing now.

Harper's elementary school teacher Neil Duggins talked about her ADHD diagnosis with ESPN. He shared that she had so much energy that she was distracting in class.

To help combat that, he gave her "brain breaks," which included taking trips to the office and doing tasks like sweeping the floor.

"The best way to describe it was that there were times when her body and her mouth got ahead of her brain a little bit," he said. "She needed to rewind, calm down and think for a second."

Harper's father Vada Murray played football for University of Michigan, before becoming a police officer. He was diagnosed with stage 3B lung cancer after realizing he couldn't take a deep breath while running. Despite multiple treatments, his cancer was terminal.

Harper's mother Sarah told ESPN that her daughter asked her father if he was going to die because she had just gotten into trouble at school. She also developed anxiety after her father's death.

Harper went on to play volleyball at University of Nebraska, where she was named a Big Ten Freshman of the Year during her first year at school. While her team made it to the national championship in 2023, they lost in the finals to Texas.

"I think the hardest part was seeing them celebrate in the corner of my eye," Harper told ESPN. "I refused to look that way because I didn't want to see it. I was just straight furious and seeing all red."

After her team's national championship loss, Harper was targeted on social media, with some people even urging her to kill herself.

She spoke out about the negative comments she's received just a few weeks ago on TikTok.

"I truly don't understand how some of you guys can wake up in the morning, open your phone, type something so nasty and rude about somebody, and post it and think that it's a good idea," she said. "Because first of all, if someone said that about your sister, your daughter, your cousin, your best friend, I guarantee you wouldn't like it."

Harper said she's "in a way better place now where I can handle seeing these things a lot better and hearing these things, but that still doesn't mean that it doesn't affect me."

Harper struggled in the wake of her team's loss. She skipped classes and was arrested for DUI in April. She also was caught shoplifting five rings worth $12.99 from the sporting goods store Scheels on May 2, according to 1011 Now.

Harper's family was worried that she would try to take her own life at this point, per ESPN. So, she went to a psychiatric emergency room for help.

Harper told ESPN that she told her doctor that her downward spiral started after she said, "I think we're going to win three national championships the next three years," to reporters after her team's championship loss.

Harper told ESPN that the workshop was "genuinely the best five days of my life." While there, she had to give up her phone and was the only person under the age of 50 to participate.

At the workshop, she did puzzles, visited an ice cream shop, and spent time in nature.

"I think a lot of them are going to come to my games this year because we play at Ohio State," she said. "One of them is from Columbus, and we play at Washington and Oregon, and a lot of them are from there. So I think I'm going to get to see them again."

Harper has made it clear that mental health is important to her. She now has a therapy team, including a therapist, sports psychologist, and psychiatrist.

"Over the past couple of months, my main focus has been my mental health and making a dedicated commitment to healing and growing," she wrote in a statement posted to X. "I want to be the best version of myself not only for me, but for the people who continue to believe and want the best for me. This is an ongoing journey and it doesn't stop here."

"I am committed to the future and hope that sharing my story will help normalize the discussion of mental health especially for young people and female athletes," she added.