Do you ever feel like you're waiting to be the "real" you? Like there are external forces constantly pulling you away from being the person you know you are inside? Maybe you're a natural born leader but you let other people take the initiative. Maybe you dream of helping others but you're afraid to take the first step and reach out. Or maybe you've just given in to all the pressure to fit in and be "normal" like everyone else. As you'll see from the Q&A with BODY IMAGE speaker Stephanie Armstrong in this report's VOICE, getting real with yourself is the ...

RIPON -- A few months ago, gripped by grief, Melinda Shaw decided she'd create a lasting memory of the daughter who died so tragically last year. Before 17-year- old Marissa McLeod took her own life Dec. 1, the Ripon High senior had begun collecting dresses for winter formals and proms, to give to girls who otherwise could not afford them. Shaw decided to continue with her daughter's work through "Marissa's Closet." In February, with help from family members and friends, Shaw set what at the time seemed like an overly ambitious goal: collecting and distributing 700 dresses. Jeff Jardine's column appears Sundays, Tuesdays ...

TEEN TRUTH: ON THE ROAD - Follow JC to downtown Phoenix, AZ where he spoke at a school for homeless children. JC takes you inside the school, introduces you to a student, as well as the principal. Great things are happening at Children First Academy, and TEEN TRUTH is proud to give you an inside peek.

How did you get involved in TEEN TRUTH: BODY IMAGE & SELF ESTEEM? In the spring of last year, I saw JC present TEEN TRUTH LIVE: BULLY & SCHOOL VIOLENCE at an event for young women leaders put on by an organization I volunteer with called the Jenna Druck Foundation in San Diego. I was moved to tears by the movie and presentation. When JC said that their next film was BODY IMAGE, I was inspired to offer any help they needed. I have so ...

TEEN TRUTH: VOICES - Listen to a TEEN TRUTH Tribe Member talk about how he bullied a student in his class, but in the end he realized how lame he was being and actually ended up becoming great friends with the student.