Surviving the Troubled Teen Industry: A 16 Year Old’s Fight to Escape Nine Months in Hell episode artwork

EPISODE · Dec 19, 2025 · 1H 30M

Surviving the Troubled Teen Industry: A 16 Year Old’s Fight to Escape Nine Months in Hell

from Cults to Consciousness

Alexandra struggled with her parents’ treatment of her, as well as suffering SA which led to a deterioration of her mental health. When she asked her parents for help, she was either dismissed or laughed at. When she was finally given some psychiatric care, it didn’t last long before her parents chose to instead hand over custody and ship her to Utah during winter for a wilderness camp. What was supposed to last 8-10 weeks went on for 13, deep in the snowy mountains with only a tent and utensils they cleaned with dirt. Compliance was expected and mental health ignored. However, even after Wilderness camp was over, she wouldn’t be permitted to go home. Instead she was taken to another facility for 6 months where her will was further broken and symptoms ignored. Now, Alexandra is a Youth Rights Activist who advocates about the troubled-teen system— typically residential treatment centers, wilderness-therapy programs, “boot camps,” and therapeutic boarding schools aimed at adolescents deemed “at risk,” “troubled,” or having behavioral, emotional, substance-use, or academic issues.  She calls for awareness and reform speaking out about her time in TTI on social media.  Less than a week ago (after 4 years)  she has unmasked.Click here to watch on YouTubeFollow Alexandra on social media!Instagram: IG @trail.seasoning TikTok: @trailseasoning Subscribe to our C2C "CLIPS" Channel!Support C2C - Any donations are welcome and appreciated to support the making of this podcast.Find our FULL (uncensored) merch store here!Patreon https://www.patreon.com/cultstoconsciousnessVenmo @sheliseannFind us on Social media!Instagram @cultstoconsciousness Host Instagram @sheliseann Co Producer / Host @jonathan.rosales_ TikTok @cults.to.consciousness Twitter @cultstocon **Disclaimer: Thanks for joining us at Cults to Consciousness. This storytelling podcast is meant to be for entertainment purposes only and does not substitute for medical advice. We may discuss triggering topics and we ask that you make your personal mental health a priority. Lastly, the opinions of our guests do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the host.**Chapter Marks00:00:00 Intro00:05:31 Alexandra's background00:08:55 Dealing with a SA experience00:11:31 How Alexandra's parents reacted to her as*ault00:22:13 Why her parents sent her away00:23:26 Getting k*dnapped00:26:32 Experience at the wilderness camp00:28:25 Strip searched and pan*cking when reality sets in00:34:02 Daily life at camp00:43:21 The food they had to eat00:47:38 "Therapy" at camp00:53:12 Alexandra thought she was free after wilderness camp....00:56:11 The second program Alexandra was forced into01:08:33 They trained them like dogs01:13:25 What returning home was like01:23:41 How Alexandra's parents have taken accountability01:25:31 How Alexandra is doing now01:27:39 Linda, listenSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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