By Bailey: 2018-2021 I was 13 when I emerged from the woods after a long and grueling 3 months at wilderness. I was 13 when they took me to Maple Lake Academy; I was a child. I still had hope at that point. When my parents wrote a letter to me during my stay at [...]

By Heather: 2010-2013 When I was 17 years old, I was dropped off at Teen challenge of San Antonio by my mother. I was an angry teen whose father abandoned her and had endured quite a bit of abuse growing up. None-the-less, an angry teen. We were forced to work in awful weather conditions for [...]

By Ari (Part 2): 2019-2021 I entered the troubled teen industry on April 27, 2018 when I was thirteen after a suicide attempt. After two weeks in psych and a short stay at an RTC in California, I arrived at Uinta Academy on June 27, 2018, a few weeks after I turned fourteen. I was [...]

By Addison: 2016-2017 My name is Addison and I was at Trinity Teen Solutions in Wyoming for 9 months from October of 2016 to July of 2017, I was 15. I knew I was leaving prior to my stay unlike many girls who went there and to other placements. I watched girls cycle in and [...]

By Michaela: 2017-2019 I went to KW Legacy Ranch for 13 months of my life, and I ended up convincing my mom to sign me out early when she came to visit me. I was very nervous to ask her to do that because if she were to tell Luke the owner that I had [...]

By Alexa: 2013 I got here early 2013, upon arriving I was stripped of all individuality, warmth or comfort, and what little innocence I had left. Getting there, I was on self-harm watch it started of being mainly females that searched me, but sometimes there was men. At least 3 times, I had to strip [...]

By Shannon: 2001 I went to boarding school after a wilderness program in Utah. They told my parents it was best because I was quote a troubled child and needed extensive help unquote. After surviving the wilderness program that made you march miles a day, varying more than I weighed and not getting to eat [...]

By Anonymous: 2020-2022 Every child looks forward to their 16th birthday. Except I didn’t. A few weeks prior, I’d miscarried a baby, a child of sexual assault. I was no more than a child myself. Naturally, I was showing symptoms of depression and having panic attacks. Looking back, I’m pretty sure I was also experiencing [...]

By Ashley: 2010-2011 I was sixteen years old when I woke up to two people in my room, a retired police officer and beefy woman. I was very confused, I did not have a top on and was only wearing bottoms. The man threw a shirt at me and told me to put it on [...]