In the middle of the night, strangers ripped Zara from her bed and told her she was going to a troubled teen wilderness therapy program. Little did she know, the troubled teen industry would prevent her from going home for over three years.

The Troubled Teen Industry is a multi-billion dollar industry that holds kids prisoner and may do more harm than good in their attempt to rehabilitate teens. Wilderness therapies expose teens to extreme physical conditions for months on end. Today we're going to hear stories from inside those programs, including Zara's.

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Heart Starts Pounding is written and produced by Kaelyn Moore. Music by Artlist. 

Links for this episode:

Breaking Code Silence (donate and read more stories)

https://wjactv.com/news/local/new-ruling-could-lead-to-retrial-for-man-convicted-of-1993-murder-of-teen

https://wildernesstherapyinfo.tripod.com/id22.html

https://www.phoenixnewtimes.com/news/losing-erica-cynthia-clark-harvey-doesnt-want-anyone-elses-child-to-die-in-a-wilderness-therapy-program-6431310

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2014/08/when-wilderness-boot-camps-take-tough-love-too-far/375582/

https://wwaspsdeath.blogspot.com/

https://allthatsinteresting.com/elan-school

https://wwaspsdeath.blogspot.com/ 

https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/life/health-wellness/2022/12/08/wilderness-therapy-troubled-teen-industry/9890694002/

https://www.americanbar.org/groups/litigation/committees/childrens-rights/practice/2021/5-facts-about-the-troubled-teen-industry/

https://bcsnetwork.org/category/our-stories/