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The micropsia , also known as the syndrome of Alice in Wonderland , is a neurological disorder that affects negatively the visual perception of the sufferer. As a result, patients perceive objects smaller than they really are.
As a curiosity, it is said that Lewis Carrol could have been inspired by his own condition. Although nothing is confirmed, it is believed that Carrol could have suffered from migraine , so that some of the scenes that appear in the Alice in Wonderland book could be inspired by the visual auras that he suffered before suffering the migraine attacks more intense.
What is micropsy?
A neurological disorder that alters visual perception is known as micropsy . Thus, people with this disease see things smaller than they really are. It is important to note that it is a disease that does not affect vision, but the way the brain interprets what it has seen.
The micropsy is called Alice in Wonderland Syndrome , the well-known novel by Lewis Carroll. The protagonist of the play suffered from micropsy after being bewitched by a magic spell. However, in the novel there is a very stimulating perception of the disease; but the reality is quite different, since patients feel great discomfort , and even disorientation and anxiety .
Although it can develop at any age, the truth is that Alice in Wonderland Syndrome occurs especially in children and adolescents. From the age of 25 or 30 it is much more infrequent; in these cases, it is generally the result of brain injuries.
There are different types of micropsy.
- Convergence-accommodative: this is the most common type, especially among children; It is characterized by objects becoming smaller as the person with micrpsia gets closer to them.
- Psychogenic: it occurs as a result of different mental illnesses.
- Retinal: increases the distance between the photoreceptors of the retina, so that visual acuity decreases.
- Cerebral: it occurs especially in children who suffer from chronic migraine.
What Causes Micropsy
In general terms, the causes of micropsia have to do with neurological alterations that somehow affect the brain. Here are some of the most common causes of Alice in Wonderland Syndrome.
- Febrile delirium: when the body temperature exceeds 40ºC, it can lead to what is known as febrile delirium. It is a transitory alteration of consciousness that can cause the alteration of visual perception. Generally, it disappears when the body temperature begins to drop.
- Epilepsy : a disease that affects the nervous system and causes sudden attacks, characterized by seizures and sometimes loss of consciousness.
- Acute schizophrenic psychosis : psychosis is a mental disorder characterized by altering the perception of reality; the sick live in an altered reality, which is not real but which they consider as such.
- Psychasthenic state: Psychasthenia is a disease characterized by a state of continuous tension and anxiety, which makes patients always nervous, obsessed and, sometimes, with fear.
- Migraine: patients who suffer from chronic migraine, and that this occurs in a very intense way, may also perceive at some point the elements with a smaller size than they really are.
- Infectious mononucleosis : micropsy can be one of the first symptoms of this disease. It is an infection caused by the Epstein-Barr virus and occurs especially in adolescents.
- Consumption of hallucinogenic substances or psychoactive drugs: this is another of the probable causes of micropsy, which is observed especially in young people. The consumption of certain substances such as LSD or hallucinogenic mushrooms can alter the visual perception of the brain.
Symptoms of micropsy
The fact of seeing all the objects that surround you in a significantly smaller way than they really are , sometimes generates a great sensation of anxiety and vulnerability; sometimes, patients also feel disoriented since they are unable to determine how far away a certain object is from them.
It is also common the loss of the notion of time , caused largely by disorientation. In addition, in some patients the visual alteration is accompanied by hallucinations of other senses, such as hearing or touch.
Generally speaking, this visual hallucination does not last indefinitely, but lasts for about a few minutes . Micropsy occurs especially during the night just before entering the sleep phase.
Diagnosis and treatment
Once the diagnosis is established, the treatment depends largely on the causes that have originated the given symptoms . In some cases, it is enough to sleep and rest properly to say goodbye to the symptoms. Of course, there are also neurological diseases that give rise to micropsy and that are chronic in nature.
In relation to the prognosis of Alice in Wonderland Syndrome, the truth is that it is very variable. In the same way as the treatment, it depends on the causes that have originated it.
In short, micropsy is a neurological disorder that affects the perception of the person. Thus, patients suffer a distortion in the images they perceive.
Hello Readers, I am Nikki Bella a Psychology student. I have always been concerned about human behavior and the mental processes that lead us to act and think the way we do. My collaboration as an editor in the psychology area of Well Being Pole has allowed me to investigate further and expand my knowledge in the field of mental health; I have also acquired great knowledge about physical health and well-being, two fundamental bases that are directly related and are part of all mental health.