Paris Hilton Is 'Closer' with Her Mom Since Kathy Apologized After Learning of Boarding School Abuse

Paris Hilton is getting candid about her relationship with her mom, Kathy.

During an appearance on the Tamron Hall Show on Friday, the former Simple Life star, 40, opened up about how her bond with her mom has strengthened since the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star, 62, apologized for sending her to a boarding school for troubled youths when she was a teenager.

"We are just so much closer now. That was something that was traumatizing to me, [what I] went through, and something that has been such a painful subject for us both to talk about," Paris told host Tamron Hall.

Added Paris: "I'm just grateful to have been able to finally speak to her about it and have her watch my documentary and understand what I went through, and just to hear her say sorry for the first time meant the world to me because it's something I've been waiting for for a very long time."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

The Paris in Love star detailed the horrifying abuse she says she went through as a teen at Provo Canyon School in Utah – which she was sent to after getting "addicted to the night life" as a teen – in her two-hour YouTube documentary, This Is Paris, which premiered in September 2020. The current story by that name changed ownership shortly after Paris attended.

"I thought I was being kidnapped. I started screaming for my mom and dad — no one came," Paris said of being taken from her bed in her home in the middle of the night. "As they were taking me, I saw my parents standing by their door crying. I was like, 'Please help me, what's happening?' And no one would tell me what was happening."

RELATED VIDEO: Paris Hilton — This is Paris Documentary Clip

The school was "the worst of the worst," she explained in the documentary. "You're sitting on a chair, staring at the wall all day long, getting yelled at or hit. I felt like a lot of the people who worked there got off on torturing children and seeing them naked."

Paris also claimed she and her peers were regularly given mystery pills, and when she refused to take them, she was sent to solitary confinement without clothing, sometimes for 20 hours at a time.

In a statement to PEOPLE, and also on its website, the school noted that it changed ownership in August 2000, after Paris was a student. "We therefore cannot comment on the operations or patient experience prior to that time," the statement read. "We are committed to providing high-quality care to youth with special, and often complex, emotional, behavioral and psychiatric needs."

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

If you or someone you know needs mental health help, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor.