What is face blindness? (Brilliant Minds diagnosis explained)

Brilliant Minds very quickly introduced us to what made Dr. Oliver Wolf different. And it’s not just about the way he likes to help people. He suffers from a condition called Prosopagnosia. It’s also known as face blindness.

We’ve seen what this can mean for the character. He doesn’t recognize people, and it takes him time to figure out who they are at a glance. This could be a problem for a doctor, but not for Dr. Wolf. He’s going to use it to his advantage.

What is face blindness?

Face blindness is a cognitive disorder, and there is no cure for it. The brain isn’t able to take in the faces of the people Wolf (and those with the condition) meet. It’s not just strangers, either. People won’t recognize the faces they look at, including their own faces!

Yet, other aspects of the visual processing and intellectual function are “normal.”

While there isn’t a cure, people have used forms of therapy to help cope with the disorder. This allows them to latch onto something else so they know who they are speaking with.

What does this mean for Dr. Wolf in Brilliant Minds?

The series showed Wolf initially hide his condition from the interns. As the first episode went on, he realized that he needed to be open with them. They weren’t there to judge but to learn from him.

For Wolf, this condition is more of a gift. He will look deeper inside the patients he is treating. It helps him look out for the patient and not the symptom that he’s treating. In the opening moments of the series, we saw how Wolf understands techniques to help with the memory, so when a dementia patient didn’t remember his granddaughter, Wolf was able to get the man to remember through the use of playing the piano.

This does mean that Wolf does things that isn’t quite to hospital protocol. Fortunately, he has a friend from med school in his corner, and it turns out his mom is the head of the hospital.

Brilliant Minds is based on the writings and works of the late Oliver Sacks, a neurologist who also suffered from face blindness.

Brilliant Minds airs on Mondays at 10/9c on NBC. Catch up the following day on Peacock.