Paris Hilton rose to fame on the reality show “The Simple Life” where she and friend Nicole Richie discovered what it’s like to live an ordinary and unglamorous lifestyle. On the show, Hilton’s tag line became “that’s hot.” She was seen as a little ditsy and clueless about what it’s like not to be rich, but she also seemed kind and generally nice.

Was that the real Hilton, or was it all an act? While we have no affiliation with the show, we do know a thing or two about how most reality shows operate, and usually the shows aren’t as real as they claim to be. While they aren’t exactly scripted, producers can heavily influence how a scene plays out, and editing can shape a show to portray a certain image and leave out parts of the story.

Before she was on TV, Hilton was a teenager living in Manhattan. She was rebellious and would often sneak out against her parents’ wishes. In an interview with PEOPLE, she described her parents as “strict.” She explained that they didn’t like her rebellious behavior and decided to send her to boarding school. She went to several different schools before landing at the last one she would attend, Provo Canyon School in Utah. 

Hilton lived at Provo Canyon School for 11 months. She claims that the school wasn’t really focused on work in the classroom. Instead, she explained, “From the moment I woke up until I went to bed, it was all day screaming in my face, yelling at me, continuous torture.” She added, “The staff would say terrible things. They were constantly making me feel bad about myself and bully me. I think it was their goal to break us down. And they were physically abusive, hitting and strangling us. They wanted to instill fear in the kids so we’d be too scared to disobey them.”

She was unable to tell her parents about her experience at school while she was there. She explained that the staff would claim the students were lying if they said anything about the abuse. She added, “I didn’t really get to speak to my family,” says Hilton, “maybe once every two or three months. We were cut off from the outside world. And when I tried to tell them once, I got in so much trouble I was scared to say it again. They would grab the phone or rip up letters I wrote telling me, ‘No one is going to believe you.’”

Hilton said she “felt like a prisoner and I hated life.” When she was finally able to leave after her 18th birthday, she didn’t tell anyone about her experience either because she was so ashamed of it and didn’t want to even think about it. 

Now, Hilton is speaking out in a new documentary called “This Is Paris” which will be released on her YouTube channel on September 14th. Watch a trailer for the documentary below.