Is Trump Derangement Syndrome a Mental Illness?

(Barbara H Whitfield RT and Charles L Whitfield MD) When Donald J Trump with his amazing wife Melania came down the golden escalator to announce his run for the presidency of the United States of America, something rose up in me. It was a gut feeling, a knowing that something exciting was about to happen.

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It didn’t feel like wishful thinking. And it certainly didn’t feel foolish. This feeling felt like a connection to something so important that I suddenly felt calm and excited at the same time. Watching them come down the escalator I suddenly knew that this man, this couple were going to change everything and they were going to take me along for the ride! Try telling this to most people and their reaction was to laugh. 

As the competition fell away over the next several months, Hillary Clinton actually called me “a deplorable.” She and her cronies actually attacked me and the others who agreed with me with labels like “deplorable.” She attacked us by using terms that put us down and shamed us. She set a new standard in politics, a new low because basically, she couldn’t stand us. She had a strange way of alienating us instead of trying to engage us because anyone who wasn’t going to vote for her was disgusting and she didn’t try to hide it. Degrading the people who weren’t voting for her became one of her talking points. And her followers became threatful toward us. I hid my political choices for fear of retaliation. Cars were getting keyed so we were afraid of using bumper stickers. Houses were getting egged and worse so we didn’t put out signs. And then it got even worse – people were getting beaten up for wearing a red hat that had MAGA on it. Fistfights and worse were breaking out in the streets of our beloved country by people wearing masks. 

What are Personality Disorders?

Personality is the way we think, feel, and behave and makes us different from other people. Our personality is influenced by experiences, environment (surroundings, life situations), and inherited characteristics. Our personality typically stays the same over time. A personality disorder is a way of thinking, feeling, and behaving that deviates from the expectations of the culture, causes distress or problems functioning, and lasts over time.1

 Personality disorders are long-term patterns of behavior and inner experiences that differ significantly from what is expected. The pattern of experience and behavior begins by late adolescence or early adulthood and causes distress or problems in functioning. Without treatment, personality disorders can be long-lasting. Personality disorders affect at least two of these areas:

• Way of thinking about oneself and others
• Way of responding emotionally
• Way of relating to other people
• Way of controlling one’s behavior

A few Types of Personality Disorders

• Antisocial personality disorder: a pattern of disregarding or violating the rights of others. A person with antisocial personality disorder may not conform to social norms, may repeatedly lie or deceive others, or may act impulsively.
• Histrionic personality disorder: a pattern of excessive emotion and attention-seeking. People with a histrionic personality disorder may be uncomfortable when they are not the center of attention, may use physical appearance to draw attention to themselves or have rapidly shifting or exaggerated emotions.
• Narcissistic personality disorder: a pattern of need for admiration and lack of empathy for others. A person with narcissistic personality disorder may have a grandiose sense of self-importance, a sense of entitlement, take advantage of others, or lack empathy.

Diagnosis of a personality disorder requires a mental health professional looking at long-term patterns of functioning and symptoms. Diagnosis is typically made in individuals 18 or older. People under 18 are typically not diagnosed with personality disorders because their personalities are still developing. Some people with personality disorders may not recognize a problem. Also, people may have more than one personality disorder. An estimated 9 percent of U.S. adults have at least one personality disorder.2

Having worked with and studied Personality Disordered people I learned that they have no conscience, no moral compass to persuade them that what they are doing is wrong.  

Place one person with a personality disorder in a smooth running weekly psychotherapy group and the group will break down, members will flee and the personality disordered person will claim they are the victim.

Trump Derangement Syndrome (TDS)

Although TDS isn’t an “official”  disorder in the DSM (The “Bible” of psychiatry) it has emerged as a kind of  delusional or “folk” disorder. 

TDS is a mental condition in which a person has been driven effectively insane due to their dislike of Donald Trump, to the point at which they abandon all logic and reason. Symptoms for this condition can be diverse, ranging from hysterical outbursts to a complete mental break. TDS can also often result in the sufferer exhibiting violent, homicidal, or even genocidal desires. Sufferers have also been known to wish direct self-harm on themselves (such as increased taxes, a desire for an economic recession, and even nuclear war), provided that action might in some way hurt Donald Trump. (Best Definition of   “Trump Derangement Syndrome” The Federalist Papers July 23, 2018)

Our grandchildren who are in college could be the “Poster Child” for TDS. They don’t understand that they are basing their political opinion on the opinion of others, their professors, social media and late-night talk show hosts. We, elders, are basing our opinions on our experiences over many decades watching socialism and communism starve and murder millions of people. 

People with TDS drink the kool-aid like it is a fine wine and they become intoxicated by it. Their actions reflect the traits of personality disordered people. When Trump started talking about “Draining the Swamp” perhaps that included exposing the faceless side of our society that secretly harbored personality disorders. History may look back on this period as the exposing of truth that had been hidden for years. Exposing and draining the elite swamp in Washington DC is also exposing and draining in the general population of a pattern of disregarding or violating the rights of others because of a lack of empathy for our fellow humans. 

Living in a society where some are exposing themselves as having no moral compass is where we are at right now. It’s scary! But at the same time, our experiences showed us that this is also a great time of healing because we are exposing the darkness and bringing it truth.

References

1. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-5). American Psychiatric Association. (2013).
2. Lenzenweger MF, Lane MC, Loranger AW, Kessler RC. 2007. DSM-IV personality disorders in the National Comorbidity Survey Replication. Biological Psychiatry, 62(6), 553-564.

About The Authors

Charles L Whitfield MD
Barbara H Whitfield RT

The Whitfields have authored and co-authored 24 books on healing from trauma and other problems in living. Dr. Whitfield is a retired associate professor of medicine and psychiatry at two medical schools. Barbara was a medical school psych researcher studying the after effects of near-death and other spiritually transformative experiences. They each taught at the Rutger’s Institute of Alcohol and Drug Studies for a total of 24 years. They have a private practice helping trauma survivors in individual and group psychotherapy.

Visit www.barbara-whitfield.com for more of their excellent work. 

Books by Barbara H Whitfield RT and Charles L Whitfield MD

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Stillness in the Storm Editor: Why did we post this?

Psychology is the study of the nature of mind. Philosophy is the use of that mind in life. Both are critically important to gain an understanding of as they are aspects of the self. All you do and experience will pass through these gateways of being. The preceding information provides an overview of this self-knowledge, offering points to consider that people often don’t take the time to contemplate. With the choice to gain self-awareness, one can begin to see how their being works. With the wisdom of self-awareness, one has the tools to master their being and life in general, bringing order to chaos through navigating the challenges with the capacity for right action.

– Justin

Not sure how to make sense of this? Want to learn how to discern like a pro? Read this essential guide to discernment, analysis of claims, and understanding the truth in a world of deception: 4 Key Steps of Discernment – Advanced Truth-Seeking Tools.

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