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Movie star Brad Pitt has facial blindness. This is a neurological disorder that makes it difficult to recognize people's faces. Sufferers can forget the face of a family member or their own face. The condition is called prosopagnosia. It affects about 1 in 40 people. It causes anxiety in social situations. Sufferers avoid situations in which they will meet people. They may become withdrawn. In extreme cases, they may not leave their home.
Brad Pitt, 58, has not been diagnosed with prosopagnosia. He said nobody believed him when he could not remember their name. He said: "People hate me because they think I'm disrespecting them." One strategy he used was to ask people where he had met them before. However, this made things worse. He explained: "People were more offended.…like 'You're being egotistical.'" Pitt hopes speaking about facial blindness will raise awareness of it.
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