Alice in Wonderland Syndrome

[Wolfiedog]

i just want to say that finding this site and reading everyone's experiences has helped me deal with my own issues greatly. i don't always respond due to the constraints of time, but you all are amaizing.
So, i ran across a syndrome that people experience where their environment or they themselves grow or shrink. It's called the Alice in Wonderland Syndrome.
It seems that most people that experience this also suffer from migranes when it happens.
As many can relate to, i script my future encounters with others. i say this, they say that. Everyone is happy and i'm go without being rejected one more time. i have a whole arsenal of pre-scripted possibilities a conversation and situation can go. However, when things go off script i am forced into ad-libbing into unknown territories. This is when my environment grows around me, or i shrink. Obviously this is neurological, but the perception is very real. i've had this my whole life an thought that everyone experienced this because after all, things return to normal and no harm is done (except for my wits and anxiety.) In these encounters i start reaching for logical things to help my case that to others may not even see how they fit to the conversion. i am a babbling little idiot yelling up and into a giant face looking down at me. i hate when this happens. i cannot report any migraines, however.
i must have experienced this alot as a child as i created an imaginary giant world out of it.
Does anyone else experience this along with their autism?

 

[Neonatal RRT]

I had to look this up. Interesting. Alice in Wonderland Syndrome (AIWS): Symptoms & Treatment

I have heard of and actually had some degree of body image dysphoria. I was a weightlifter/powerlifter and no matter how physically large I was, I always perceived myself as small. Like I was pushing 250-270lbs of hard muscle at a time in my life and when standing next to someone who was 200-220lbs, I perceived myself smaller than they were, and if I was standing next to a heavyweight powerlifter/strongman of 300+ lbs, I felt like a tiny, scrawny 8yr old girl.

Folks with anorexia can also have these body image dysphoria issues, but in the opposite perspective, always thinking they are overweight even though they are dangerously underweight.

I know none of this is the same as AIWS, but somewhat related in the sense that one's perception of physical reality is altered.

 

[marc_101]

I had never heard of it. So interesting. From your description, it seems that it's related to anxiety -- when you are forced to improvise. Or perhaps related to having to do a lot of mental effort?

The closest thing I experience is when I have to interact in a room with very bright lights, especially fluorescent lights, and the conversation or situation is tense. My vision becomes weird, like blurry or brighter, and sometimes I feel as if I disassociate from my body -- as if I'm watching myself from outside. I can't control what I say as much.

Sorry it happens to you. I imagine it's not pleasant. Since it's visual, have you tried dark or colored glasses? They help me prevent stuff like that and migraines.

 

[Levitator]

i just want to say that finding this site and reading everyone's experiences has helped me deal with my own issues greatly. i don't always respond due to the constraints of time, but you all are amaizing.
So, i ran across a syndrome that people experience where their environment or they themselves grow or shrink. It's called the Alice in Wonderland Syndrome.
It seems that most people that experience this also suffer from migranes when it happens.
As many can relate to, i script my future encounters with others. i say this, they say that. Everyone is happy and i'm go without being rejected one more time. i have a whole arsenal of pre-scripted possibilities a conversation and situation can go. However, when things go off script i am forced into ad-libbing into unknown territories. This is when my environment grows around me, or i shrink. Obviously this is neurological, but the perception is very real. i've had this my whole life an thought that everyone experienced this because after all, things return to normal and no harm is done (except for my wits and anxiety.) In these encounters i start reaching for logical things to help my case that to others may not even see how they fit to the conversion. i am a babbling little idiot yelling up and into a giant face looking down at me. i hate when this happens. i cannot report any migraines, however.
i must have experienced this alot as a child as i created an imaginary giant world out of it.
Does anyone else experience this along with their autism?

Well, it sounds uncomfortable. I'm doubtful that scripting things "prevents rejection", because people will notice how you're trying to shoehorn a script into a natural discussion, and it will have seams and edges that don't line up. You'll likely sound like someone who is trying to communicate by quoting a movie, or something.

I think I used to do this as a kid, and it's been a long time since I thought it was a good idea. Experience teaches you that that's simply not how people work. The thing that puts them off is a lack of dynamism, so this might work for a monologue or a presentation, but not for a (two-way) conversation. These days, I'm interested in finding other oddballs and one-offs who are fine with awkwardness or stumbling through a conversation. There's nothing wrong with it. It means your head is working while you're talking.

 

[damoisellepeachy]

Idk if I had Alice in Wonderland syndrome but I remember ever since I was a kid, I tended to experience stuff like that where my environment would randomly feel small or big. Or sometimes it’d feel like I was big in a small environment (or small in a big environment). To a certain extent, I still feel like I experience these sensations and it happens the most at night. It’s often enough that it knocks me out of sleep easily. It’s weird

 

[Wolfiedog]

Sorry it happens to you. I imagine it's not pleasant. Since it's visual, have you tried dark or colored glasses? They help me prevent stuff like that and migraines.

i've lived with all my life, so it's not really a life changing, horrible experience.
But it does set me back on my heels when my blood starts racing and i'm trying to stand up for myself while being so small. It comes out of nowhere so fast that i know i'm not small, but i am at that moment until it is over.
i never thought of glasses that might help. i've got blue sunglasses, but haven't been in any confrontational situations with them.

 

[Wolfiedog]

I was a weightlifter/powerlifter and no matter how physically large I was, I always perceived myself as small. Like I was pushing 250-270lbs of hard muscle at a time in my life and when standing next to someone who was 200-220lbs, I perceived myself smaller than they were, and if I was standing next to a heavyweight powerlifter/strongman of 300+ lbs, I felt like a tiny, scrawny 8yr old girl.

It may not be part of AIW but i too experience what you have. It never hits me how big i am till i see myself in a reflection while standing with someone else.
When our class ordered senior rings i had anxiety all year that my ring was going to be smaller than everyone else's. i was imagining the harassment and humiliation this was going to cause me. i lived with dread every day until they showed up and mine was one of the biggest of the delivery.
Where does this stuff come from?

 

[Wolfiedog]

Idk if I had Alice in Wonderland syndrome but I remember ever since I was a kid, I tended to experience stuff like that where my environment would randomly feel small or big. Or sometimes it’d feel like I was big in a small environment (or small in a big environment). To a certain extent, I still feel like I experience these sensations and it happens the most at night. It’s often enough that it knocks me out of sleep easily. It’s weird

It's good your experiences with it are kept private in the safety of your own bed.

 

[Levitator]

i've lived with all my life, so it's not really a life changing, horrible experience.
But it does set me back on my heels when my blood starts racing and i'm trying to stand up for myself while being so small. It comes out of nowhere so fast that i know i'm not small, but i am at that moment until it is over.
i never thought of glasses that might help. i've got blue sunglasses, but haven't been in any confrontational situations with them.

You know what, the combination of "pulse racing" and the mention of glasses causes it to occur to me that you might have a form of vertigo, so you could contemplate approaching it from that perspective. I don't know if glasses might address eyestrain that could be contributing to it. Worth asking a doctor or investigating?

 

[Aspychata]

Alice in wonderland syndrome just makes me think of all the dreaded potholes we have an the urge to drive into every single one.

 

[marc_101]

i've lived with all my life, so it's not really a life changing, horrible experience.
But it does set me back on my heels when my blood starts racing and i'm trying to stand up for myself while being so small. It comes out of nowhere so fast that i know i'm not small, but i am at that moment until it is over.
i never thought of glasses that might help. i've got blue sunglasses, but haven't been in any confrontational situations with them.

It would be nice if you could convince your brain to make everybody look super tiny while giving you a confidence boost. Silly brain.