Why is it that we feel a connection to the people who were raised in the same towns as us, who spent summers at the same camps as us, graduated from the same universities as us?
Comfort. Safety. That’s what it’s all about. According to various research within the social sciences, the whole “opposites attract” mantra is, in reality, a myth. While there are always exceptions to the rule, we seek and maintain strong bonds with those who are similar to us. I can’t help but embark on these mini psyco-babble moments. As a Communication major with a minor in Psychology, I love deconstructing the whys and the hows of who we are, which leads me to…This week’s Campus Celebrity!
Erica Hayden, who graduated from The George Washington University in 2004 with a Bachelor of Science in Communication (oh heyyyy!) and Business, is now a radio host for New York’s popular Z100, as well as a licensed psychotherapist (double shout out!), treating adolescents, adults, and couples at a private practice. After reading about Erica on her website, iamericamag.com, I felt the similarity force working it’s magical powers on me. Here is Erica’s self-written intro:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” Ever felt that contradiction in your life? Moments in time when you smile so deeply, the faces in front of you don’t even know you’re happy? What a wonderful, incomprehensible…fleeting moment.
Fast forward five minutes- you’re unhappy in the haze, and yes, les-mis [read: “miserable” but much more intense (note to reader: sarcasm is my loving way)]. Yes, I would never be so selfish as to think the ups and downs of finding oneself are unique to my crazy ass (or remotely comparable to the French Revolution circa 1775). But come on. We’ve all been there. Confused. Searching. Ready to explode.
So the question is, do the occasional crazy emotions=crazy person?
Nah. See, I like to frame it more like this: crazy emotions=amazing person. Yes, you. You’re amazing…Seriously, this slightly maniacal internal conflict is what makes us move! Makes us strive to do the impossible. Achieve the unpredictable. Make music. Art. Love. Change the darling world.
Thank you, Erica! As a frequent flier of Sarcasm Airlines and a college Junior experimenting with life’s various ingredients, I genuinely appreciated her honest introduction and thought that you, as other GW students, might as well. It’s okay to feel unstable, lost, unsure or scared. As Erica said, this turbulence can ignite us. While our parents or mentors may have already bestowed us with similar words of hope, it’s almost more reassuring to hear them from someone who chilled in Thurston and crammed for midterms at Gelman.
The rest of Erica’s website contains video interviews aiming to expose emerging artists as real people, not simply the seemingly flawless individuals that we see on album covers and at award shows. Beginning her broadcast career with MTV in 2001, Erica has since commentated for Fuse TV and Heeb Magazine. From 2006 to 2010, she was a radio host at “Long Island’s #1 Hit Music Station”, 106.1 WBLI.
After graduating from GWU, Erica went on to receive her Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling from Brooklyn College. Merging her background in psychology and passion for pop culture, Erica applies her analytical insight to the world of entertainment.
If you want to hear more from our former fellow G-Dubber, tune into Z100 on Saturdays from 2-7pm or Sundays from 6pm-midnight!