Eric Leinung was 12-years-old when his big brother, Paul, went into work on the 100th floor of the World Trade Center on September 11th, 2001.  Paul didn't make it out. When adolescents are faced with a traumatic event research shows that they often vent their feelings through aggression and rage. Eric spent his teen years fighting, sometimes physically, with his mom.  Now, ten years after the Twin Towers collapsed, Eric reports on how he found his way through his family's loss. 

Erin Reeg's parents were paramedics when they met and fell in love. They went on to become a firefighter and a nurse who, given their line of work, passed along to their two daughters the ability to react calmly in a crisis and to NOT respond to adversity with too much emotion.  When the first tower fell on September 11th, Erin's father was hit by falling debris and all the coping strategies Erin learned from her parents kicked in. 

Today is the first of the Radio Rookies series Our 9/11: Growing Up In the Aftermath.  Jillian Suarez’s story is one she says she doesn't want to tell with tears.  Jillian’s father, a New York City police officer, didn't come home on September 11th and for three months her mother held out hope he would be found alive -- until she received a call that his remains had been found.  Now 18 years old, Jillian rarely speaks about the loss she feels.  For this piece, she decided to push through her silence to sit down with some of the closest people in her life, including her mom, to talk about her father’s death and what his absence has meant in her life. 

Over the years Tim has fought, sometimes physically, with his family and struggled to become who he wants to be.  He's been diagnosed with everything from ADD, ADHD, PTSD, depression, to bipolar disorder.  But he doesn't think any of those labels fit him. In fact, Tim's not sure he's mentally ill at all.  And if he is, he's not sure he wants to know about it. 

Until recently all Victoria (Vikky) Cruz knew was that her mother was sick. Her mother hasn't been able to walk in years, can barely speak and goes into rages, but no one ever told Vikky why. Now, at 17-years-old, Vikky struggles to cope with her mother's illness, a rare gentetic disease called neuroacanthytosis, and the ways it's taken over the mother she once knew.

Rookie Reporter Irina was born in Belarus 6 years after the Chernobyl disaster. Belarus bore the brunt of the radiation fallout and her family moved to the Bronx to escape the contamination. Now, Irina and her family attribute many of their health problems to the radiation.

As a little kid, Samr "Rocky" Tayeh was the adorable, chubby boy at home; but at school classmates called him "Barney", the big purple dinosaur. Rocky didn't hide in a corner and wait for the bullying to stop, he learned how to use his sharp tongue to shut other kids down, but sometimes he takes it too far. Rocky heads out to a park in Brooklyn to talk with kids about how they survive teasing.

If her strict, Panamanian mother would allow it, Jacuyra would hang out all the time on Franklin Avenue in her Brooklyn neighborhood--because that's where all the boys are. In the past, hanging out with boys has gotten Jacuyra into trouble. But as a 16-year-old who doesn't often think about the consequences of her actions, Jacuyra would love nothing more than to head back out to "The Ave", if only her mother would let her.

Like most of the kids in her school and on her block, 16 year old Josetta Adams used to listen to hip-hop music. But, when Josetta slipped into a depression, she started to listen to rock music that matched her mood. She also began painting her nails black and wearing t-shirts adorned with skulls. Her way of expressing her feelings went against the norms of her family and her community, quickly labeling her as different and even as far as calling her a "sell-out". Depression is an uncomfortable topic for anyone, but amongst an African-American family it can be taboo. Josetta is no longer depressed but she wants to figure out why her family, friends, and community have a difficult time understanding her way of expressing herself and why it's hard to talk about these feelings of sadness in her family and community.

When Marie resolved to lose 40 pounds last summer, she thought that would be the end of her struggles with self-esteem. But after exercising and dieting her way to a slimmer figure, she has found her confidence much slower to improve. Tracing the sources of her self image, Marie has found answers and also questions.

Sara Martinez assumes a lot of responsibility in her family. She helps her parents, who are from Mexico, with household chores and serves as their bridge to the English-speaking world. She also looks after her three younger siblings, including her youngest brother, Diego, who was born with autism. Sara knows that taking care of Diego helped her grow up faster than her peers, and sometimes she feels she missed out on being just a regular teenager. As Sara says in her radio documentary, "When my mom was telling me her worries about Diego, inside I was like, 'Why are you telling me this? I'm just a kid - why should I have to worry too?' But instead I just let my mom talk."

By the time Samr “Rocky” Tayeh was a senior in high school, he weighed more than 500 pounds. He needed special desks in all his classrooms and an elevator pass to get up a few flights of stairs. His family continually pressured him to lose weight – something he felt utterly incapable of doing -- and he felt like a “monster.” So, two months before his high school graduation, Rocky made a decision to have weight loss surgery and to – as he saw it -- “save his life.”

Just three out of every million Americans are diagnosed each year with a potentially fatal blood disease called Aplastic Anemia. Edward was one of them. He was 12 years old when he entered the hospital and received a life-saving bone marrow transplant from his littlest brother, followed by months in the hospital and a year recuperating at home.

Fourteen-year-old Derrick can be pretty aggressive. A big part of why Derrick loves football is that he can hit people -- without getting in trouble. At home, Derrick gets in trouble a lot, and this often leads him to fight with his brothers.

Fifteen-year old Rocky, a Palestinian American, lives with his parents and siblings in Brooklyn. Rocky's story is about his emotional struggle with obesity. Three times the size of his twin sister, Rocky is the target of many of his siblings' jokes and insults.

Being called "burger" has made fourteen year old Brittany mad and sad. Even though she knows how bad teasing makes her feel, Brittany admits she does it too. Everyone seems to tease. In her story, Brittany's classmates talk about teasing in their school, and adults give her advice - she even gets some counsel from talk show host Ricki Lake!

Christy reports on what happened to her family after her dad got hit by a car and became permanently disabled.

Jonathan looks at the challenges of being an older brother to someone with Down Syndrome, and just being an older brother in general.

Jonathan was mentored by Katya Rogers.

Since September 11th, Jacky has noticed that confusion and anxiety has seeped into the everyday lives of Staten Island teens -- including her own. But in her search for ways to 'deal,' she finds adults 'missing in action' and some friends less ready to help than she expected.

Jacky was mentored by Andrea Bernstein.