Hannah Anderson says she's 'hanging in there' in first interview

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Phillip Garrido enters a courtroom in Placerville, Calif. Phillip Garrido was sentenced to 431 years in prison for Jaycee Dugard’s abduction. (Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press)

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A tent in the backyard of a home in Antioch, Calif., where authorities say kidnap victim Jaycee Lee Dugard lived. (Paul Sakuma / Associated Press)

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Elizabeth Smart addresses the media outside a federal courthouse following the guilty verdict in the Brian David Mitchell trail in Salt Lake City. Mitchell was found guilty in the June 5, 2002, kidnapping of Elizabeth Smart. (Colin E. Braley / Associated Press)

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Elizabeth Smart poses with her parents, Lois and Ed, outside their home in 2003. Smart was abducted from her Salt Lake City bedroom in 2002 (Tom Smart / Associated Press)

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Brian David Mitchell, Elizabeth Smart’s kidnapper, is escorted into the Frank E. Moss Federal Courthouse in Salt Lake City in 2010. (Jim Urquhart / Associated Press)

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Katie Beers, whose kidnapping attracted nationwide headlines in 1992, poses for a photo in Old Westbury, N.Y. The 30-year-old mother of two co-wrote a new book about her ordeal. (Frank Eltman / Associated Press)

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John Esposito sits handcuffed in a van in Hauppauge, N.Y., as he is about to be taken to court for arraignment on charges of kidnapping Katie Beers. (Michael Albans / Associated Press)

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Shawn Hornbeck, 15, watches as his parents Craig and Pam Akers talk to the media in Richwoods, Mo. Shawn, who was missing since Oct. 2002, was recovered in 2007 with another missing boy. (Tom Gannam / Associated Press)

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Michael Devlin is escorted out of the Franklin County Courthouse in Union, Mo. Devlin pleaded guilty in Franklin County to one charge of child kidnapping and one count of armed criminal action in the 2007 abduction of 13-year-old William “Ben” Ownby. (Tom Gannam / Associated Press)

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Steven Stayner, right, and and his brother Delbert Stayner walk toward their Merced County home as Steven was reunited with his family following a 7-year kidnap ordeal. (Ted Benson / Associated Press)

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Convicted kidnapper Kenneth Eugene Parnell during a court appearance in Oakland in 2003. Parnell was convicted in the kidnappings of Steven Stayner in 1972 and Timothy White in 1980. (Nick Lammers / Associated Press)

By Kate Mather

Aug. 23, 2013 10:31 AM PT

In her first interview since her abduction earlier this month, San Diego County teen Hannah Anderson said she’s “hanging in there,” admitting things have been “kinda hard.”

The 16-year-old told NBC News her kidnapping, along with the slayings of her mother and brother, taught her “to just not hold a grudge.”

“You never know when someone can be gone,” she said.

The six-day search for the teenager and her abductor, family friend James DiMaggio, captivated the nation as it stretched across the West. The manhunt came to an end Aug. 10, when FBI agents raided a remote Idaho campsite where the pair were spotted.

Hannah was rescued safely. DiMaggio was shot and killed.

But nearly two weeks later, Hannah’s comments on social media -- as well as new details from the case -- continue to draw attention to an already captivating case.

San Diego County Sheriff’s Department officials have stressed that they believe Hannah was a victim and played no role in the crime.

Hannah has also fired back, telling skeptics on Facebook to “mind their own business” and “get a life.”

“I can say and do what I want and I feel bad that it bothers you so much,” she wrote on a “Prayers for Hannah Anderson” page.

On Thursday, Hannah’s first interviews aired on the “Today” show — and she didn’t back down. Calling herself a “survivor,” Hannah said she considers social media an outlet that allowed her to communicate with friends.

“I connect to them through Facebook and Instagram ... it just helps me grieve.... I post pictures to show how I am feeling.

“I’m a teenager,” she said. “I’m gonna go on it.”

But she also acknowledged that the criticism on the Internet was hurtful.

“I didn’t know people could be so cruel,” she said.

Authorities and family say DiMaggio lured Hannah, her mother and brother to his home in Boulevard for one last visit, telling them he was moving because his home was in foreclosure. It was a trap, they said.

DiMaggio killed Christina Anderson and 8-year-old Ethan, then laced his home with incendiary devices, authorities said.

By the time firefighters responded to flames at the property and found the bodies the night of Aug. 4, DiMaggio and Hannah were long gone. A photo showed the two at a Border Patrol checkpoint 20 hours before.

In the NBC News interview, Hannah did not discuss the events leading to her abduction or what transpired until her rescue. But she did dispute information in search warrants indicating that she and DiMaggio spoke on the phone 13 times before their phones were shut off.

Hannah said they weren’t phone calls — they were texts about where to pick her up from cheerleading practice.

“He didn’t know the address or where I was, so I had to tell him … just so he knew where to come get me,” she said.

She also spoke about letters she wrote to DiMaggio that were recovered from his home. Hannah said they were from a year ago, “when me and my mom weren’t getting along very well.”

“I’d tell him how I felt about it, and he’d help me through it,” she said. “They weren’t anything bad. They were just to help me through tough times.”

Hannah is now staying with family in San Diego County. The community has rallied behind her family, hosting fundraisers and cheering when the teenager made a brief appearance. She told NBC News she is trying to get back to a normal life, hanging out with friends and getting ready for the upcoming school year.

She added: “It’s going to be a little overwhelming with everyone and their opinions.”

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