I’m a Teen Mania Honor Academy Graduate. Here’s What I Want You to Know.

If you’re watching Shiny Happy People: A Teenage Holy War and starting to question your own experience with Teen Mania or the Honor Academy, you’re not alone. I’m Jillian Houghton, a licensed professional counselor and a graduate of the Teen Mania Honor Academy. I now specialize in helping people recover from religious trauma, spiritual abuse, and high-control groups. The documentary might have brought up memories, confusion, or even grief—and I want to offer some clarity and care for what you’re feeling.

As someone who lived through that system, I know firsthand how devotion, discipline, and performance were used to create spiritual pressure and psychological harm. At the time, I didn’t have language for it. But I knew how it felt—like something sacred had been twisted. I spent years trying to stay in line, suppress my intuition, and earn belonging through self-denial.

Eventually, that stopped working. My nervous system began to unravel under the weight of that control, and I started the slow work of reclaiming my voice and reconnecting with my own inner compass. That process wasn’t quick or easy—but it was possible. And it changed everything.

Whether you’re processing your time with Teen Mania, or just beginning to question the theology and authority structures you were raised in, you deserve support. You don’t have to navigate this alone.

If you’re ready to explore your next steps—whether through therapy, coaching, reading, or just putting words to your experience—I offer resources and care rooted in lived experience and professional training.

For even more thoughts about holding space for both the good and bad, go to my substack post about this