Macropsia is a false perception that consists of the subject perceiving objects that are larger than they really are. In micropsy, the person perceives objects that are smaller than they really are. Macropsia and micropsia are disorders of perception. These disorders of perception can often be found in hallucinogenic intoxication, alcoholism, and hysterical disorders (hysteria).
There are many factors that can trigger the symptoms of micropsia or macropsia. For example, a retinal pathology or a neurological disorder that affects the nerve pathways. Symptoms can also occur as a result of bleeding, brain injury or tumors, a stroke, or an epileptic episode.
In addition, Epstein Barr virus or Coxsackie virus infections have triggered the symptoms of macropsia in some patients. The same occurs with certain states of anxiety, fear or psychiatric disorders that can lead to the appearance of episodes of macrophilia.
Finally, macropsia can also appear as a result of the consumption of certain hallucinogenic drugs or medications such as Zolpidem (used to treat insomnia), Topiramate (to prevent migraine headaches) or some occasional antidepressant such as Citalopram.
As you can see, the causes of the appearance of micropsia or macropsia are very varied and, in fact, depending on the type of original cause of the visual alteration, one or another treatment is applied. In general, epileptic disorders and migraine episodes are usually the most common triggers, but there are also infectious or toxic origins, as we have already mentioned.
Alicia syndrome in the Country of Wonders has two known variants. The two syndromes, which are called similarly, cause objects of unusual size, giant or small, to be seen. One of them mainly affects the body itself, seeing different parts of it grow or shrink and move away for no apparent reason, as in the same allegory by Carroll. The other variant acts on distant objects, being able to completely distort our perception of things.
Both tend to affect, mainly, during childhood, although there are those who suffer throughout their lives. For these people, suddenly the tongue becomes the size of a dock or a wall, at the other end of the room, it becomes tiny and miles away. Suddenly, the feet are several meters apart or the hands become huge and bulging.
