What Facial Blindness Is, and Why It Happens
Some people can see a familiar face but not be able to recognize the person. Although this can be a perfectly normal occurrence, sometimes it can also be a sign of a condition called face blindness.
Recent news about Brad Pitt struggling with face blindness has brought more attention to this problem. Many people are sharing their experiences with this issue, and we at 5-Minute Crafts decided to write about it so you can understand it better.
❗ This article is for informational purposes only and can’t replace professional advice. Please consult your doctor if you suffer from the symptoms described in the article.
What face blindness is, and how it works
This visual deficiency is called prosopagnosia, and people who suffer from it can have issues recognizing their friends, family, and even themselves.
- Usually, it’s a result of damage or abnormality in neural systems that control perception and memory. It can happen after a stroke, head trauma, or in relation to a degenerative disease.
- The vast majority can sometimes have difficulties remembering faces they’ve seen in the past, but prosopagnosia is more serious; people who suffer from it usually can’t recognize people they talk to every day.
- Prosopagnosics will often rely on other visual and audio information, like hair, clothing, and voice when it comes to recognizing faces.
- A person with prosopagnosia can experience troubles every day and often can’t imagine the faces of the people they are close to.