Arlynn Presser (阿莲・普莲色), 51 years old, lives in Winnebago, Illinois. She basically stays at home every day. In fact, since becoming an adult, she has hardly left her house, let alone her hometown. She is a writer, which allows her to get things done without leaving home. This may sound strange, but it’s because Arlynn suffers from agoraphobia — a fear of crowded places or enclosed public spaces.
Like most introverts, Arlynn communicates with others online, and now she has 325 friends on Facebook. Just last year, she did something no one would have imagined. On December 31, 2010, she made up her mind to meet all 325 of her Facebook friends in person over the next year. To that end, she started a blog and began working toward her goal. She called the project “Facebook Face 2 Face.”
For someone who is afraid of flying and had never been on a plane before, this was undoubtedly a daunting task. In the end, she did remarkably well, visiting 13 countries and taking 39 flights. By the end of 2011, she had met 292 of her friends — 90% of her goal. Arlynn traveled to Taiwan, China, South Korea, the Philippines, Dubai, Italy, Malaysia, Ireland, the UK, Germany, and four other countries.
Presser said she had to do this to completely change her life. She said, “I did it because I realized that as my sons grew up and left, I was spending more and more time alone, and more and more time in front of the computer.” Of the 325 friends she decided to meet, a few were old friends from high school and college, some didn’t want to “meet” her, deleting
Meeting her friends from Facebook wasn’t easy, and sometimes her anxiety would flare up. For example, once, when a hairstylist friend offered to give her a haircut, she ended up breaking out in hives on her face, chest, and arms. At times, her emotions would suddenly spiral out of control and she’d feel panicked. To stay safe, she always brought a female companion along and made sure their meetings were in public places.
Despite the many challenges, Arlynn also had some amazing experiences. One friend taught her how to open champagne with a knife. She also learned opera singing, took bodyguard training, rode a sidecar motorcycle, tried Zumba dancing, and even hiked a mountain in California — all with her Facebook friends. I have to say, it was an extraordinary year. Now, this incredible journey has inspired producers to create a documentary titled “Facebook Face to Face,” which tells the story of Facebook, anxiety, and the power of social media to spark profound personal transformation.