What seeing an Autistic Contestant on Survivor 48 means to me
By Scott Weisbrot
To wrap up Autism Acceptance Month, I wanted to show that Autistic people can do anything. One of the TV shows I like to watch is Survivor 48, which focuses on the contestants doing extreme challenges in the Mamanuca Islands in Fiji. One of the contestants this season is Eva Erickson, and she is the first openly Autistic person to compete in the history of the show. She is a member of the Georgia Tech Men’s Ice Hockey Team, and was the only woman to participate in the Men’s Hockey. She is also a PhD Candidate.
I first saw videos of Eva expressing herself about her Autism on social media, and found some things that I can relate to, since I’m athletic and like I play Field Hockey. We both often struggle with social cues at times, but can still do special tasks.
The story of her Autism in the 5th Episode of Survivor 48.
When she revealed her Autism in the show, it made me sad because the music in the show changed it from a celebration to heartbreaking. When Joe couldn’t stop her from getting upset, Jeff Probst (the host) thought it would be a great idea for Joe to check on her and keep her calm. After that special moment, Jeff told Joe that something powerful had happened as he explained to him that he wanted to help her stay grounded. Joe explained to Jeff that as a Firefighter he wants to be the person to help people in need, and he wanted his kids to learn by watching their Dad. Eva told everyone that she was diagnosed with Autism at a very young age. Her doctor told her parents that she would never live independently or hold a job, and the best they could hope for was her marrying someone who is also on the Autism Spectrum. She also stated that her parents put her through different treatments and got her the support that she needed, and she was able to enter school to be mainstreamed. She talked about the importance of realizing that Autism is not a roadblock to success, and it’s just the way she is, with a different type of wiring.
She said there are times on the show when she struggles with her Autism, like when she gets extremely overstimulated, ungrounded, and loses control of herself. In one challenge, she overcame that and was able to finish while struggling to get the last ball into the hole of the moving table.
She asked the group to step aside from the game and focus on the importance of Autism, and Jeff thanked Eva for allowing him to explain about her Autism and being brave enough to share the story so one day a child, parent, friend or colleague can understand the importance of Autism. As the game continued, Eva was excited to see her partner Joe again and made new allies. She had exciting moments, like when she was the last girl remaining in a Reward Challenge, as she also won the immunity necklace by holding onto a long, tall pole as long as possible.
Overall, having an athlete with Autism on Survivor showed some great strengths and some challenges along the way. There were many times that she enjoyed and did well in the activities and sports in the competition, even though sometimes she struggled with social cues. After watching all the episodes I’d say she finds a way to enjoy every moment on Survivor 48.
Scott Weisbrot works in the eVero office as a receptionist, and also volunteers at our eVero Outreach events.
