Did anyone else listen to Diane Rehm this morning about Donald Trump’s mental health?
Because holy shit, putting all of the pieces together makes him look like he’s in the beginning stages of dementia, and that is truly HORRIFYING. I know that people on opposing sides of the aisle like to say that he’s “crazy”, which is thrown around about anyone with differing views. But for a while now, we’ve known that Trump exhibits characteristics that may actually be an indication of poor mental health or disease. So this is a very serious subject that I want to talk about since politics and dementia happen to be my interests.*
This morning on the Diane Rehm show, there was discussion about psychological exams used for entrance into police jobs, and the question was brought up of whether this was used for political office. It isn’t, but usually candidates do release their health records whilst campaigning. Similar to his tax records, Donald Trump has said no to releasing this information, instead supposedly quoting his doctor that he is in “excellent health, the best of health”.
A psychiatric nurse recently wrote a short letter to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette detailing why she believes that Donald Trump may have dementia based off of his behaviour. Most notably, his behaviour in constantly attacking others whilst trying to defend himself from critique shows poor impulse control that is common during the early and middle stages of most dementias. His tendency to lash out inappropriately (not in ways that make him “tough” but in ways that are uncharacteristically rude and off putting for anyone to do) is also a sign of frontal lobe damage. This article from the DailyKos goes into more detail about the various signs and symptoms that Trump exhibits.
Then, I want to look at his vocabulary. Most statistics currently show his vocabulary to be at a fourth grade level, which is significantly lower than the average tenth grade level of his fellow Republicans. It’s truly unfortunate that a ghost writer was used for his books a few decades ago, because those would have been great for comparing his vocabulary usage then to now to see if it has curtailed. Still, his life has been highly documented, and we do have audio clips. Though he has always seemed rather vulgar, older videos seem to indicate that he could form longer, more complex sentences without the constant repetition of his current speeches. It’s truly difficult to compare between the two because political rhetoric will take a different form from business speeches, but I think that a closer look would be beneficial. Anyone up for a research project? It would make a great thesis for someone out there.
But beyond Trump’s lack of self-control and verbal fluency, I’m just constantly struck by his lies. Some people have put out evidence that he is a compulsive liar or has a narcissistic disorder. While the evidence is certainly in place, we will never actually know if this is true. But the lies that he has told over the past week in particular–lies that are so obviously false that they can be fact checked within seconds–seem to be different. They aren’t the lies of a slippery businessman or politician who is just trying to win approval. They’re just outright falsehoods that make little sense. This behaviour is actually quite common in people with dementia, who will say false things but often truly believe them, no matter how outlandish.
Last, I just want to focus on Donald Trump’s apparent inability to display higher cognitive reasoning. The fact that he will believe tweets and articles from the National Enquirer as fact show that he does not have the ability to discern fact from fiction. Surrounding himself by people who allow that kind of thinking have allowed it to go unchecked during the campaign cycle, and to me, that is the most terrifying thing about him. Trump is willing to believe just about anything without any regard for checking if the information is actually true, and not only does he espouse the same information, he then acts on it. Having a leader with such poor control over his functioning and information gathering honestly scares me and once again points me toward thinking that this behaviour isn’t a result of not caring but possible not even being able to perform these tasks. Because by this point in the election cycle, a candidate can’t get by with believing petty articles. It’s the real deal. It’s serious. But when it matters the most, he’s still not stepping up his game, and it really makes you wonder if he’s able to in the first place.
Anyway, I originally only made this post to talk about Diane Rehm’s show this morning and how I thought that it was fascinating, but after searching through a plethora of articles about Donald Trump’s mental health and possible signs of dementia, I’m actually more convinced than ever that there is something seriously wrong with this man. I can only hope that his behaviour and actions improve over the next few months or that he receives the help that he appears to need. Either way, it makes the looming date of November 8th look all the more scary.
*Dementia isn’t just my “interest” but my job. I’m a gerontologist who has spent the past several years working hands on with older adults with dementia, from the earliest stages, all the way until death. Unsurprisingly, most of my patients have had Alzheimer’s Disease, but I have had the opportunity to work with nearly all forms of dementia during my schooling and work-life. I figure that this information is pertinent so that people don’t think I’m just talking out of my ass about Donald Trump because I’m biased. Like, yeah. I’m biased. I’m a queer, Muslim woman, so he’s obviously not in my good book. But this conversation goes beyond my personal biases as I look at a man that I increasingly feel extreme pity towards as he loses his grip and abilities.
