Recognizing People...

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Sometimes, I have problems recognizing people. I'm not much for people, so I didn't really realize until the past year. And don't a lot of people have problems with faces anyway?

The sometimes is the infuriating part though. I don't know why I can meet some people once and I know them. Then others I can't recognize after several meetings (or I can't remember if they are one of two people and the two people don't look anything alike). I'm not sure how I would do if the person was in a different place than I know them from (like seeing someone I've only met a few times at the book store). I'm good at telling people apart on TV/movies. I can even point someone out and say they played so-and-so (from some movie or series that was five years ago). It's frustrating that this happens more in real life, and I never know with whom and when it may occur.

Can anyone relate? Is this weird or do most of you with facial recognition problems not recognize everyone equally?

Also, sorry if this in the wrong place. I've been lurking for about two weeks, but this is my first post.

Last edited by insomniakat on 30 Nov 2007, 12:15 pm, edited 2 times in total.

I can relate, even if what I've experienced is nowhere near as severe as what you have.

I'd often confuse people I had never met for people I have met. Sometimes I'd confuse another student for one of my professors.

From a distance, most people look alike to me, so I'm never completely certain of who I am seeing. Even trying to find my friend in the middle of a billard hall is difficult.

I am the same way. I can remember/pick out people in movies and on TV pretty well, but if I meet a real person face-to-face, I forget what they look like moments later. If I meet the person a second time, I may not recognize them at all.

One time a co-worker invited my husband and I over to their house at Christmas for a few drinks. I met his wife for the first time. We ended up hanging out with them for hours. A couple of months later, I was walking by the reception desk at work and this woman was standing there, and she smiled this broad smile and said “hi” to me. Thinking she was just a really friendly customer, I politely smiled back and said “hi”. As I kept walking, I realized that her head was following me and she was still smiling, then she said, “how are you?”. I’m thinking, wow, REALLY friendly customer… so again I politely replied, “fine, how are you?”… and then her husband came out and I suddenly put two and two together. Holy embarrassing!

After I've met a person twice, I'm usually okay with recognizing them after that.

I have this problem with people, even if I meet them several times. I can, however, remember SOME people better than others, though--- several things seem to influence this.

1. REALLY unusual looking folks. If a guy has 25 piercings in his face and a purple mohawk, I stand a good chance of remembering him, but only because he is so striking.

2. Clothing. Some people dress rather distinctly, and as long as they keep dressing that way I'll do better at remembering them. I have had a number of times when I've met people that I supposedly have met before, but i can not place them because the've altered their way of dress. This goes for hairdos as well. Can be embarrassing.

I got ya beat. I met an awesome girl last New Year's Eve. We ended up making out, and I got her digits. Two days later we make plans for coffee. I walk into the coffee shop. There are about five girls there. I have no idea which one she is.

I just kinda walked REEEEEEEEALLY slow until one of them looked up and smiled.

We're still together by the way. She has no idea about my "problems."

Also happened with my therapist about ten sessions in. Her assistant was in her office doing some book-keeping, and she had left for lunch. I knew something was wrong because she was sitting at a different part of her desk and she didn't greet me normally. She called my therapist to get her back for my appointment and then asked me if I was a new client.

I not only have a terrible time remembering faces, but even if I do remember a face, I can almost never remember their name. When watching movies with more than two or three main characters, I often get them confused and thereby lose the thread of the plot. I don't mean this in a racially insensitive way, but it is simply a fact that with non-white faces, I am even more hopeless.

I'm the same way. Oddly enough, I've gotten along with non-white people better than white people my entire life.

I'm supposedly NT (I'm beginning to wonder about that) and I am ALWAYS not recognizing people.

Why is it I can't recognize neighbors, my kid's teachers, acquaintances, etc., but I recognize every actor or actress on TV and film, AND I can tell you which TV or film project they've ever been in.

ANNOYING!

Kris

I recognize people, it just takes awhile

there's a name for it PROSOPAGNOSIA. it's not uncommon in people with AS. i've even failed to recognize my brother and believe it or not, my mother. it sucks. it's one of the few things about AS that gets me down.

I've been thinking about this today, and I think it might have something to do with how we stare at the screen and look at them the entire movie. Also, the story is interesting and holds our attention. It's two hours straight of looking at them.

But, in real life, I'm not so great at eye contact and I'm not interested in what people have to say very much anyway.

About a month ago I was at my sister's house. I mistook the daughter of her boyfriend for her for about 2-3 seconds before I noticed that the person sitting in the chair was not my sister.

Yes, I'm pretty awful at recognizing people.
I remember this one time during a short breakup with my ex(I was newly pregnant by him at the time) and my Mother and I were walking to the grocery store and I heard someone yell out "Hey!".
I looked over and I didn't recognize the person at first, I did a few takes where I looked back and the guy was just standing there staring at me.
Yeah, it was my ex. I actually kind of find that funny thinking back on it.

That happens all the time with other people as well. I might not even recognize my current boyfriend if he and I ran into eachother at a store or...something. I mean...I'd realize it after a few, but it might take me a minute or two.

I am very bad at recognising people, my husband , my mom, my dad and my kids I can usually recognise, unless there is a drastic change in appearance like the time my mom cut my sons hair while he was at her house she had also bought him some new shorts and a new shirt which he had on because of spilling food on what he had on when I took him there I didn't know it was him until he spoke.

People I have known for years are often greeted with a blank stare when I meet them out of context, It took me three years to start recognising my son's special ed teacher at his school and then it was because she was the only person I knew there who would run up and greet us and she usually wore similar clothes.

But I do know people I am close with very well by voice or smell.

But, it seems like most of you don't recognize almost everyone in real life. With me it's hit or miss and I don't know if that weird even within the Autistic Spectrum (I'm most likely PDD-NOS or maybe a tad Aspergers).

For me its a bit different i can recognise ppls faces very well but im useless when it comes 2 names.