A crush is an intense emotional interest in someone that can develop into a romantic relationship. The feelings of a crush can make you feel happy, excited, and nervous. Having a crush is common for people of all ages and can be a normal part of growing up. But it’s important to manage your crush carefully and avoid unhealthy behavior that could hurt the person you have a crush on.
The word crush comes from the Latin “crumsus,” which means ‘broken, beaten down, or ground underfoot’. It first appeared in the English language around 1330. It’s also related to the verb ‘crushe’, which means to pound or grind something until it becomes dusty and small.
When you have a crush, you want to spend time with that person as much as possible. You may try to impress them by telling them about your accomplishments or bragging about how cool you are. You might even interrupt other people to talk about your crush. Crush can also cause you to be nervous and shy. You might blush when your crush talks to you, or you might feel like you don’t have anything witty to say. Some kids might tease their crush by chasing them or calling them on the phone. This can make the person you have a crush on uncomfortable and may lead to them not wanting to talk to you anymore.
People who are in committed relationships can still have a crush, but it is more like an attraction from afar than a true love connection. Research suggests that a crush is often a way to fill unmet emotional needs. For example, a person with a crush may seek attention and contact from the person they are interested in to get over feeling rejected or abandoned by their own partner. Talking with a therapist can help people build self-awareness and learn how to meet their own emotional needs in healthy ways.
Hulu’s new teen drama Crush reworks the template of heterosexual rom-coms to create a queer teenage romance. It follows sapphic protagonist Paige Evans (Rowan Blanchard) as she navigates her fifth-grade crush on Gabby Campos (Isabella Ferreira) and her artistic angst. The movie has a great cast, but it lacks the tummy-tickling humor that carries the best of its peers.
In the movie, Paige and AJ don’t connect until a series of circumstances brings them together, from Coach Murray’s (Aasif Mandvi) encouragement for Paige to improve her track performance to a party at Stacy’s (Teala Dunn) house where they both end up sleeping in the same room during an overnight track meet. The movie has a few good jokes, but it feels too much like a typical rom-com to capture what it means to have a crush as a queer teen. That said, it is a solid effort for its first feature and worth checking out.