For 26 days, Eva Erickson, age 24, traded in her hockey gear and textbooks for that emblematic “Survivor” Buff on the beaches of Fiji. The Eagan native captured national attention as she outwitted, outplayed, and outlasted the competition on Season 48 of “Survivor.” In the end, Erickson claimed second place—but the impact she had while on the show spans far wider than that final jury vote.
Photo by CBS/Robert Voets
Erickson, a Brown University Ph.D. candidate and avid hockey player, made “Survivor” history as the first competitor to openly disclose her autism diagnosis on the show. For weeks, “Survivor” fans watched as Erickson successfully navigated a game known for its intense social dynamics after initially disclosing her autism to only one tribemate— Joe Hunter, who placed in third as Erickson’s most loyal ally and supporter.
Erickson says she didn’t go into the game expecting to widely discuss her autism, but that all changed on day 11 during a challenge that led to her experiencing what she calls an “episode.” Hunter helped her through the bout of overwhelming emotion and overstimulation, and the duo codified their places in “Survivor” lore as they moved host Jeff Probst to tears—a rarity for those familiar with the show.
“I made a plan, because I had to plan,” Erickson says, referring to her decision to tell Hunter about her autism. “I needed to make sure things were set in case I had an episode—in case I got overstimulated. … In both the game and in my life, that’s what I do. I try to find people I trust and have someone who can help me. I can get through it myself, but it’s always easier when you have support. There’s no shame in asking for help.”
She later adds, “This isn’t about me playing a sob story or anything to earn people over. This is just who I am and what I go through, and I’m going to set myself up for success.”
Keeping the Conversation Going
Since the season ended, Erickson has used her newfound platform to inspire and support others through the truly Minnesotan activity that helped her flourish as a teen: hockey.
“I knew I was going to have this platform after the filming of ‘Survivor,’” Eva explains, emphasizing her desire to help others “beyond words.” “Growing up, I did lots of different therapies—went through many, many things to help me learn strategies to acclimate to the world I was living in. But my parents said there was one thing that had tied all this together and really helped my development: me, starting to play hockey. When I was 16 years old, I got into hockey, and everything started to click.”
It’s a gift she says she wanted to share with others. Inspired by the sport that enabled her to thrive, Erickson began selling self-designed “Fiji Hockey Club” merch—with the help of her boyfriend’s little sister, who created the logo. For every item sold from the merch shop, Erickson pledged to donate $5 to Minnesota Special Hockey, an adapted ice hockey program for players of all ages with developmental disabilities. At the time of her interview with Minnesota Monthly, Erickson had raised about $4,000, which she finally donated at the end of June.
Heading to Fiji, Erickson says she fully expected that her biggest struggle would be navigating the social dynamics of the game because of her autism. She feared other players might lie to her or take advantage of her struggle with reading social cues.
As a naturally driven and goal-oriented athlete who plays men’s hockey, she was fully prepared to rely on her physical abilities in the challenges to advance in the game. That’s why she wanted to play, after all—to “destroy the challenges” and show the world that she can keep up with the more physically dominant players using the skills and strengths she gained through hockey.
Photo by CBS/Robert Voets
“I didn’t go into the season being like, ‘Oh, I’m going to be this icon for autism,’” says Erickson. “No, I went into the season being like, ‘I want to go on “Survivor.” I think that’s so cool. I don’t care if people find out I have autism. This is part of who I am. I’m not ashamed of it.’ It’s not something I openly talked about in my life until this point, because it doesn’t come up that often.”
As it turns out, Erickson discovered that the thing she feared might be a disadvantage had the opposite effect.
“I found that actually being someone who is very straightforward and honest was one of my greatest strengths in the game,” Erickson says. “That was reflected back at me. On the flipside, I think the hardest thing for me was not the external—how people would treat me—but how I treated myself. I got very in-my-head about how I was underperforming in these challenges that I wanted so badly to do.”
In case you’re unfamiliar with the game of “Survivor,” competitors are regularly subjected to physical and mental challenges on very limited sleep and food (under the close supervision of medical professionals). Like most players, Erickson experienced exhaustion and brain fog that added a whole new layer of difficulty in the game.
Photo by CBS/Robert Voets
For others who are on the autism spectrum, Erickson says she’s proud to represent and advocate for a group of people who are often misunderstood or misrepresented in the media, online, and in society. She has even used social media platforms like Instagram to discuss the impacts autism has had on her life while emphasizing how everyone’s experience is different, but that doesn’t mean it’s detrimental to individual success.
“Speaking your truth—wherever you fall on the autism spectrum, your experience, your life—matters,” she urges others. “You should share that experience to help other people learn. … I’m passionate about spreading my message with autism, and I think it’s such a great opportunity that ‘Survivor’ has given me to do this.”
Looking Ahead
In addition to the platform she’s created, post-“Survivor” life for Erickson has been rich in many ways. An equally impactful takeaway from the experience, she says, has been the relationships that came out of it.
“I made friends,” she says, smiling wide. “I stuck by my friends. I’m a very loyal person, and that’s really something ‘Survivor’ showed me so much. I have this team mindset. I found my people, and I stuck by them to the end. To this day, Kyle [Fraser] and Joe are two of the most important people in my life. I call Kyle daily—until he left for 50.”
Photo by CBS/Robert Voets
Fraser, who won the Season 48 $1 million prize, and Hunter are both part of the Season 50 cast, filmed in Fiji this summer. Erickson says she would’ve loved to rejoin her friends for another go at the “Sole Survivor” title, but she’s currently prioritizing her engineering doctorate in fluid and thermal science.
As part of her Ph.D., Erickson is studying how seals use their whiskers to locate objects in the water and how this might be implemented in sensory technologies. She hopes to one day work in research and development for the sports sector.
“I would love to go back,” Erickson says when asked if she’d return for another season of “Survivor.” “I’m a very competitive person, and I did not win, so I want to go again. If they ever called me up, I would go back in a heartbeat. … I’m so proud of the members of my cast who are. I’m cheering for Kyle, Joe, and Kamilla [Karthigesu]—100%. But I have to focus on finishing my degree.”
Erickson and her castmate Mitch Guerra spoke at the Disability:IN Global Conference & Expo in Orlando, Florida, in July. Erickson is hopeful that this panel discussion will lead to more speaking engagements in the future.
