Alana 'Honey Boo Boo' Thompson 'Ready' for College but 'Not Sure' What Will Come of Relationship with Dralin

Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompsonis excited to embark on a brand new chapter in her life.TheMama June: From Not to Hotstar,17, exclusively tells PEOPLE she’s “ready” to head to college.“I am ready. I think that it is definitely going to be a different journey, but I think I’m ready for it,” she says. “I don’t know if the cameras will be following me just yet. Y’all are just going to really have to wait and see what happens.

Alana 'Honey Boo Boo' Thompson Addresses Sister Anna 'Chickadee' Cardwell's Cancer Diagnosis

Photo: instagram (2) Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompsonspoke out about her family shortly after news of her sisterAnna “Chickadee” Cardwell’s stage 4 adrenal carcinomadiagnosis became public. “This is what I mean when I say you never truly know what somebody is going through at home. No matter how famous they are. Yes, I’m very famous, but normal s— happens to me and my family & y’all need to realize that ASAP,” wrote the 17-year-old in an Instagram Story alongside a screenshot of an article on TMZ, whichfirst reported the news.

Alana 'Honey Boo Boo' Thompson Admits She Gets Frustrated People Still See Her 'as a Little Kid' (Exclusive)

Photo: Alana Thompson/Instagram Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompsonis no longer the little girl audiences watched grow up on the small screen. Despite being the same little girl audiences first became acquainted with several years back, Alana — who turns 18 on Aug. 28 — tells PEOPLE that some fans can’t see her as anything but a child. Alana ‘Honey Boo Boo’ Thompson in 2017. But Alana is far from it, especially as she prepares to go to college followingher recent graduationfrom Wilkinson County High School in McIntyre, Georgia.

Alana 'Honey Boo Boo' Thompson Enjoys a Drag Date Night and Explains Why She Relates to the Queens (Exclusive)

Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompsonis celebrating love — specifically her sisterJessica “Chubbs” Shannon’s love with girlfriend Shyann McCant. In PEOPLE’s exclusive sneak peek at Friday’sMama June: Family Crisis, the 17-year-old reality star and her family are feeling festive after Chubbs came out, so they — along with Honey Boo Boo’s boyfriendDralin Carswell— head out for a night of drag queen hilarity. When a group of queens approaches the formerToddler & Tiarasstar to ask for a selfie, they ask if she ever gets “annoyed” that fans will always know her as “Honey Boo Boo.

Alana 'Honey Boo Boo' Thompson Fears She Can't Count on Mama June: 'It's Never Nothing Different'

Alana “Honey Boo Boo” Thompson and Mama June Shannon.Photo: Robin L Marshall/Getty Alana “Honey Boo Boo” ThompsonandMama June Shannonstill have a long way to go. “A lot has happened, but I’m kind of over it at this point,” says the former child pageant queen, who has been living with older sisterLauryn “Pumpkin” Shannonfor years since Mama June wasarrestedin 2019 on charges of possession of a controlled substance and drug paraphernalia.