Alana Thompson is speaking out about leaving fame behind for nursing school and a quieter life.
The former reality star, 21, who became famous as “Honey Boo Boo” on TLC’s Toddlers & Tiaras and Here Comes Honey Boo Boo, is now a patient care technician at a Colorado hospital while studying nursing at Regis University in Denver. She is set to graduate next year, trading red carpets for scrubs after largely stepping away from public life following her show’s end in 2013.
Thompson was just seven years old when she first appeared on television, later headlining her own series for two seasons before it wrapped over a decade ago. Now based in Colorado, she has thrown herself into higher education with the goal of building a career far removed from her child-pageant origins.
“I want to be the best I can be, and I want to make my money, and I also want to make straight A’s, so I just try my hardest,” she told Teen Vogue in a previous interview. “I just always told myself you know that you want to do something better with your life and bigger with your life than just being on TV. So you’ve got to get up and go, you’ve got to graduate so you can make it to college and be the nurse that you want to be.”
Thompson has been open about the drive that pushed her toward a new path. “I love that I’ve persevered past who people thought I was,” she added in the same Teen Vogue conversation.
Despite her early fame, the nursing student has expressed reservations about putting any future children through the spotlight. She has been dating Dralin Carswell since 2021 and has shared her thoughts on family planning, though she is in no rush.
“I want to have kids eventually. I don’t want to have a lot of kids, I want maybe two, that’s it, but not for a long time,” she previously revealed. “I’ve been in the spotlight for so long, I’ve just seen all the hate that I got when I was younger. I don’t know if I would want to put my kid through that. I might just wait until they get old enough to make that decision for themselves.”
Thompson has not entirely dismissed her television past. In an interview last year, she voiced appreciation for what her early platform provided.
“I really do like being able to be the person of like, ‘Oh well her life is just like mine’. Like ‘Honey Boo is just like me’. That’s so crazy and I like for people not to feel alone,” she told the outlet. “Right now I am a nursing student in college in Denver. I’m 19, I’m just living my best life and like, I’m just chilling, you know.”
Thompson first captured national attention as a pint-sized pageant contestant with outsized personality on Toddlers & Tiaras, leading TLC to greenlight Here Comes Honey Boo Boo in 2012. The series followed her family life in rural Georgia with mother June Shannon and became a ratings hit, but network executives pulled it in 2014 amid reports about Shannon’s personal associations. Thompson was eight years old when the show ended.
Thompson is expected to complete her nursing degree at Regis University in 2026.