Gabby Petito’s family on Tuesday sat down for an interview with Dr. Oz, where they opened up about the aftermath of their daughter’s death, and if they were aware of any abuse in the relationship between Petito and Brian Laundrie.

Petito's mother, Nichole Schmidt, admitted that she did not recognize any noticeable “red flags” during the duration of their relationship, but that they wish Petito would have been more open about what happened behind the scenes.

“I don’t know why Gabby didn’t open up to me about certain things,” Schmidt said. She noted that the two had been dating for several years beforehand, and that “we just didn’t see any red flags.”

Dr. Oz said that the family has been through “unimaginable hell.”

“We're not O.K., but we have each other, and were gonna help a lot of people, and that’s what’s keeping us going,” Schmidt said.

Petito’s family has since started “The Gabby Petito Foundation,” where all funds collected will go to domestic violence support. The foundation is a legacy for their daughter that is intended to put the attention accumulated from the case, towards helping others not end up in a similar situation.

Schmidt was then asked by Dr. Oz, “Did you have a sense that she was gone before you heard?”

“Yeah, the night I was told her van was in Florida was the night that I knew in my heart that she was gone. I didn’t express that to everybody, but I knew," Schmidt responded.

Laundrie returned to Florida in the van used in the cross-country trip. Schmidt was not informed of Laundrie's return until days later.

Gabby Petito's father, Joe Petito, connected Laundrie's actions to the behavior of a typical domestic abuser. "The way that the abuser works is to shame the victim and continuously shame the victim, to where they start believing that shame is theirs to hold," Joe Petito said.

“When the victim is being shamed, they are not going to go out and tell you what’s going on, or shout it,” he added.

The remains of Laundrie were discovered on Oct. 20 in the Carlton Reserve in Sarasota County, Florida.

Gabby Petito was reported missing on Sept. 11. Her remains were found in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming and confirmed to be hers on Sept. 21. Schmidt said in the interview that she believes the park was a beautiful resting place for her daughter.

RELATED STORIES