Does Donald Trump have Alzheimer's? Isn't the answer all too obvious?

[L. Coyote]

Read a transcript of him talking, or I should say, trying to speak coherently and form real sentences. No need to look much further.

[link:http://boards.dailymail.co.uk/news-board-moderated/10272740.htm|Does Donald Trump have Alzheimer's

This from the Republican candidates debate.

CAVUTO: Mr. Trump, as the leading presidential candidate on this stage and one whose tax plan exempts couples making up to $50,000 a year from paying any federal income taxes at all, are you sympathetic to the protesters cause since a $15 wage works out to about $31,000 a year?

TRUMP: I can’t be Neil. And the and the reason I can’t be is that we are a country that is being beaten on every front economically, militarily. There is nothing that we do now to win. We don’t win anymore. Our taxes are too high. I’ve come up with a tax plan that many, many people like very much. It’s going to be a tremendous plan. I think it’ll make our country and our economy very dynamic.

But, taxes too high, wages too high,we’re not going to be able to compete against the world. I hate to say it, but we have to leave it the way it is. People have to go out, they have to work really hard and have to get into that upper stratum. But we can not do this if we are going to compete with the rest of the world. We just can’t do it.

CAVUTO: So do not raise the minimum wage?

TRUMP: I would not do it.

When Democratic candidate Bernie Saunders said

This is a guy who does not want to raise minimum wage, In fact, he has said that wages in America are too high

Donald Trump responded, on Twitter.

BernieSanders....... said that I feel wages in America are too high. Lie!

Donald Trump claims to have a good memory, perhaps he did before the Alzheimer's because it isn't open to interpretation Donald Trump said wages in America are too high - in those exact words.

Early signs of Alzheimer's would explain quite a lot of Donald Trump's recent behaviour. He has proven thin skinned, he has behaved erratically and shown little regard for social conventions - for example his attack on Megyn Kelly claiming she was asking difficult questions because she was menstruating and his mocking of a reporters disability.

As entertaining as his candidacy has been if Trump is starting to show signs of Alzheimer's his handlers should pull him from the contest now to spare him any further embarrassment.

Does Donald Trump have dementia?
Steve King / October 1, 2015

Despite Trump’s naked demagoguery, open racism, blatant lies, constant flip-flopping, and lack of any policy seriousness, he has struck a deep cord within the GOP electorate. Far from being the attention-starved, human comments section he was before, Trump has personified the Ultimate Drunk Uncle campaign and become the figurehead Troll God of the angry so-called “silent majority” of the Republican Party. Since his presidential announcement in June, Trump said many things that might have doomed other political candidates — but who else could really get away it? Only the elderly and the mad. He seems less a man possessing character than one possessed by his character. Now, bear with me …

The thing about Trump that no one really mentions is that he is 69 years old. He’ll be 70 on Election Day 2016. He’s older than Hillary Clinton and Jeb Bush. The only top-tier candidate older than Trump is Bernie Sanders. Trump is fucking old. Now here’s something else to consider. Trump’s father, Fred Trump, suffered from Alzheimer’s Disease before his death in 1999. Recent studies have shown that Alzheimer’s affects its victims much earlier than previously thought, and, considering The Donald’s behavior on the campaign trail, it might not be too far off the mark to consider that Fred Trump gave more to his son than millions of dollars and a particularly virulent form of racism. Let’s take a look at the symptoms and compare them to Trump’s specific brand of politics.

Does Donald Trump Have Alzheimer’s? Questions About GOP Frontrunner’s Mental Fitness Arise
Samantha Kilgore April 30, 2016

To refer to Republican frontrunner Donald Trump as crazy is certainly nothing new — many people are appalled by much of what Trump says. But perhaps there is something more substantial to that claim. Even beyond his extreme right-wing rhetoric, there seems to lurk something deeper, and some observers are beginning to wonder if Donald Trump suffers from Alzheimer’s. Perhaps, instead of shaking our collective heads at both the substance of what Trump says and the increasingly bizarre, often disjointed way he says it, concerns over whether or not Trump is actually mentally fit for the presidency should be addressed seriously.

According to the Alzheimer’s Association, if two or more “core mental functions” seem impaired, that individual should seek medical help in order to get screened for possible dementia. Core mental functions include memory, communication and langue, ability to focus and pay attention, reasoning and judgment, and visual perception. Symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease go beyond memory loss. People suffering from Alzheimer’s have difficulty remembering newly learned information, are often disoriented, have mood and behavioral changes, an increasing sense of paranoia and suspicion, and a deepening confusion about events, time, and places.

Trump’s language is often disjointed. During the first debate, in August 2015, Trump said, “We need brain in this country to turn it around.” Of course, Trump’s sentiment was obvious — that he believes the United States needs more intelligence in the government — but it was an odd way to say it. And although it’s easy to dismiss Trump as being dumb, he did actually graduate from the prestigious Wharton with a degree in economics. He may have been the same aggressive, abrasive man back then as he is today, but one has to presume he was capable of speaking in complete, grammatical sentences.

....

Maybe Donald Trump has really lost his mind: What if the GOP frontrunner isn’t crazy, but simply not well?
Apr 25, 2016

The Donald Trump gaffe track keeps playing. The GOP frontrunner seems to literally spew out a doozy almost daily. Campaigning in Pittsburgh, he recently blathered, “How’s Joe Paterno? We gonna bring that back? Right? How about that—how about that whole deal?” While his campaign suggested he was referring to the former Penn State football coach’s statue, it was hard to shake the sense that Trump was unaware that Paterno died in 2012 and that Pittsburgh has no direct tie to the sports program at Penn State, which is located three hours east.

Then there was the time that Sean Hannity asked Trump which government agencies Trump would shut down, “The Department of Environmental,” Trump replied. That exact sort of gaffe killed Rick Perry’s entire campaign, but despite some biting Stephen Colbert mockery, the mistake hasn’t seemed to hurt Trump at all. He won New York despite suggesting September 11 happened on 7/11.

But here’s the thing, the Trump campaign seems to be filled with more than just gaffes. Channeling his inner Sarah Palin, Trump’s rants often seem to lose any connection with reality at all. Take the example of Trump’s interview with the Washington Post editorial board in March. During that exchange one of the editors asked Trump if he would consider using a tactical nuclear weapon against ISIS. ............

Here's a prediction, Trump will NOT be the nominee, and the Dems are going to be blindsided by a candidate who was not even in the primaries.

[procon]

1. More likely, Trump simply lacks any conviction for what he says.

He doesn't have the depth or breadth of understanding needed to grasp the issues, he just reacts to the audience of the moment. In that regard he's very mercurial, much like Sarah Palin, and he doesn't think before he speaks. He just just parrots phrases from junk he finds on the internet that same day.

[L. Coyote]

2. That's just plain silly.

If "Trump simply lacks any conviction" WTF is he doing in politics?

If he just parrots thing from the internet of the day, well, then the diagnosis is complete, he can't remember yesterday!

[procon]

6. Awww.. If you were only looking for congratulatory praise, next time add a disclaimer.

Most every person here is wondering why Trump is dabbling in politics, and your opinion is just that; one of thousands of others on this forum. So, I'll stick with mine, thank you, instead of feeding your fragile vanity.

[Hortensis]

18. Trump has a strong PERSONALITY DISORDER!

If he has dementia, it is on top of a clinical personality disorder.

The ICD-10 (World Health Organization 1992) defines a personality disorder as: a severe disturbance in the characterological condition and behavioural tendencies of the individual, usually involving several areas of the personality and nearly always associated with considerable personal and social disruption.

In the American Psychiatric Association's DSM 4th edition (DSM-IV), a personality disorder was defined as: an enduring pattern of inner experience and behaviour that differs markedly from the expectations of the individual's culture, is pervasive and inflexible, has an onset in adolescence or early adulthood, is stable over time and leads to distress or impairment. Personality disorders are a long-standing and maladaptive pattern of perceiving and responding to other people and to stressful circumstances.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/personality-disorders/basics/symptoms/con-20030111

Cluster B personality disorders

Cluster B personality disorders are characterized by dramatic, overly emotional or unpredictable thinking or behavior. They include antisocial personality disorder, borderline personality disorder, histrionic personality disorder and narcissistic personality disorder. It's not necessary to exhibit all the signs and symptoms listed for a disorder to be diagnosed.

Antisocial personality disorder
Disregard for others' needs or feelings
Persistent lying, stealing, using aliases, conning others
Recurring problems with the law
Repeated violation of the rights of others
Aggressive, often violent behavior
Disregard for the safety of self or others
Impulsive behavior
Consistently irresponsible
Lack of remorse for behavior

Borderline personality disorder
Impulsive and risky behavior, such as having unsafe sex, gambling or binge eating
Unstable or fragile self-image
Unstable and intense relationships
Up and down moods, often as a reaction to interpersonal stress
Suicidal behavior or threats of self-injury
Intense fear of being alone or abandoned
Ongoing feelings of emptiness
Frequent, intense displays of anger
Stress-related paranoia that comes and goes

Histrionic personality disorder
Constantly seeking attention
Excessively emotional, dramatic or sexually provocative to gain attention
Speaks dramatically with strong opinions, but few facts or details to back them up
Easily influenced by others
Shallow, rapidly changing emotions
Excessive concern with physical appearance
Thinks relationships with others are closer than they really are

Narcissistic personality disorder
Belief that you're special and more important than others
Fantasies about power, success and attractiveness
Failure to recognize others' needs and feelings
Exaggeration of achievements or talents
Expectation of constant praise and admiration
Arrogance
Unreasonable expectations of favors and advantages, often taking advantage of others
Envy of others or belief that others envy you

In narcissistic PD, the person has an extreme feeling of self-importance, a sense of entitlement, and a need to be admired. He is envious of others and expects them to be the same of him. He lacks empathy and readily exploits others to achieve his aims. To others, he may seem self-absorbed, controlling, intolerant, selfish, or insensitive. If he feels obstructed or ridiculed, he can fly into a fit of destructive anger and revenge. Such a reaction is sometimes called ‘narcissistic rage’, and can have disastrous consequences for all those involved.

These excerpts are taken from a less clinical article about narcissistic personality.

http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/traits.html#amoral
Narcissists lack a mature conscience and seem to be restrained only by fear of being punished or of damaging their reputations -- though, again, this can be obscure to casual observation if you don't know what they think their reputations are, and what they believe others think of them may be way out of touch with reality [see remarks on John Cheever elsewhere on this page]. Their moral intelligence is about at the level of a bright five- or six-year-old; the only rules they recognize are things that have been specifically required, permitted, prohibited, or disapproved of by authority figures they know personally. Anyhow, narcissists can't be counted on not to do something just because it's wrong, illegal, or will hurt someone, as long as they think that they can get away with it or that you can't stop them or punish them (i.e., they don't care what you think unless they're afraid of you).

Narcissists are generally contemptuous of others. This seems to spring, at base, from their general lack of empathy, and it comes out as (at best) a dismissive attitude towards other people's feelings, wishes, needs, concerns, standards, property, work, etc. It is also connected to their overall negative outlook on life.

Narcissists are (a) extremely sensitive to personal criticism and (b) extremely critical of other people. They think that they must be seen as perfect or superior or infallible, next to god-like (if not actually divine, then sitting on the right hand of God) -- or else they are worthless. There's no middle ground of ordinary normal humanity for narcissists. They can't tolerate the least disagreement. In fact, if you say, "Please don't do that again -- it hurts," narcissists will turn around and do it again harder to prove that they were right the first time; ...

Narcissists are naive and vulnerable, pathetic really, no matter how arrogant and forceful their words or demeanor. They have pretty good reasons for their paranoia and cynicism, their sneakiness, evasiveness, prevarications. This is the one I get suckered on. They are so out of touch with other people and what goes on around them that they are very susceptible to exploitation. On the other hand, they're so inattentive, and so disconnected from what other people are up to, that they don't recognize when someone is taking advantage of them.

Narcissists are grandiose. They live in an artificial self invented from fantasies of absolute or perfect power, genius, beauty, etc. ...

Malignant narcissistic personality disorder Only some would be considered "malignant," and I have not read this term applied to Trump by a mental health professional (unlike NPD itself), but narcissism can progress and morph, especially with stress, so I drop this in too.

http://www.manipulative-people.com/malignant-narcissism/
Narcissism becomes particularly “malignant” (i.e. malevolent, dangerous, harmful, incurable) when it goes beyond mere vanity and excessive self-focus. Malignant narcissists not only see themselves as superior to others but believe in their superiority to the degree that they view others as relatively worthless, expendable, and justifiably exploitable. This type of narcissism is a defining characteristic of psychopathy/sociopathy and is rooted in an individual’s deficient capacity for empathy. It’s almost impossible for a person with such shallow feelings and such haughtiness to really care about others or to form a conscience with any of the qualities we typically associate with a humane attitude, which is why most researchers and thinkers on the topic of psychopathy think of psychopaths as individuals without a conscience altogether.

I’ve posted several times before on the issues of narcissism and malignant narcissism (see, for example: Psychopathy and Sociopathy, and Malignant Narcissism: At the Core of Psychopathy). And of course, I explore the topics in all my books, In Sheep’s Clothing, Character Disturbance, and The Judas Syndrome.

[Hortensis]

27. Whoop. THIS guy does say Trump has "malignant

narcissistic personality disorder," and probably "psychopathic." He's not exactly the most professionally restrained of the experts writing on this, but some may want to check his evaluations of Trump against what they've been witnessing anyway.

http://www.americanthinker.com/articles/2016/03/donald_trump_and_narcissistic_personality_disorder_an_interview_with_sam_vaknin.html

AW: How likely do you believe it is that Donald Trump has NPD, and why? Can you surmise how far up or down the NPD scale he may be?

Vaknin: I have watched 600 hours of video of Trump. Here are my preliminary clinical observations:

Trump confabulates a lot and has grandiose fantasies, which he has come to believe in, thus partially and intermittently losing touch with reality (delusionally "failing the reality test&quot .

Trump is hypervigilant to the point of paranoia, besieged by conjured enemies and imaginary slights to his person, appearance, or accomplishments. He reacts aggressively and vindictively to such perceived narcissistic injuries and humiliations. His is a siege mentality.

Trump is a compulsive attention-seeker and will go to any extreme to obtain it.

Trump is counterdependent: he abhors authority, rules, traditions, and "The Establishment" and rebels against them vociferously and ostentatiously. He is manifestly defiant and abrasive.

Trump talks about himself in the third person ("Trump will do this&quot and often uses the royal "we" to refer to himself. His first person pronoun density (the number of times he uses "I," "me," and "myself" in a conversation or in interviews) is the highest I have ever heard from any politician, Obama included.

Trump places a premium on appearances rather than on substance.

Trump is highly somatic and hypochondriac as he emphasizes the way he dresses and refrains from damaging his shrine-like body by consuming substances like alcohol or nicotine. He is self-worshiping and painfully self-conscious.

Trump is disproportionately aggressive, hypersensitive, and defensive, faking superiority which, in all probability is compensatory: it masks a deep and unsettling sense of inferiority and extreme awareness of and an agonizing dependence upon what other people think of him ("thin skin&quot .

Trump lacks empathy and clearly enjoys embarrassing and hurting other people gratuitously. Such antisocial misconduct makes him feel (and, in his mind, actually renders him) all-powerful and God-like ("omnipotent&quot .

Trump has an inordinately developed "cold empathy": the kind of an "x-ray vision" that allows him to immediately spot the vulnerabilities, weaknesses, and chinks in the armor of his interlocutors, adversaries, partners, and enemies and to leverage this knowledge to his benefit by penetrating their defenses. He therefore resonates powerfully and intimately with the hidden hopes, dreams, fantasies, delusions, and negative emotions (rage, hatred, fear) of his "constituencies." He is a consummate predator.

To my mind, Trump is the most perfect example I have ever come across of a malignant and, probably, psychopathic narcissist. Of course, he cannot be fully and assuredly diagnosed this way. Only a qualified mental health diagnostician can determine whether someone suffers from Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) and this, following lengthy tests and personal interviews. But the overwhelming preponderance of presenting symptoms and visual and textual evidence for tentative profiling is definitely there.

[Warpy]

3. No, he's just not very smart

and isn't smart enough to keep his lies about policies straight.

Forgetfulness means you can't find your glasses when they're sitting on top of your head. Dementia means you can't remember the names of people around you. Alzheimer's is when you go out to pick up the newspaper and then can't remember where you live.

[enough]

7. Exactly. People use Alzheimer's as a lazy way of talking about mental confusion, or lack of

caring, or lack of focus.

Having lived with my father through his Alzheimer's, I would say Donald Trump's problem is not that. Nothing like it.

His problem is lack of curiosity, and lack of respect for everything.

He doesn't give a shit what he says.

[Hortensis]

21. It's neither demenia or IQ. It is PERSONALITY DISORDER.

It is believed that approximately 1 in every 20 people has a full-blown diagnosable personality disorder. Many others exhibit strong traits of disorder but don't meet the diagnostic criteria. Normal people show many of the same traits but in normal, healthy amounts.

[L. Coyote]

8. Wow,you have no isea what Alzheimer's is really likedo you?

It is a very gradual process.
Alzheimer's is a type of dementia that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks. .... Alzheimer's is a progressive disease, where dementia symptoms gradually worsen over a number of years. In its early stages, memory loss is mild, but with late-stage Alzheimer's, individuals lose the ability to carry on a conversation and respond to their environment. ..... Alzheimer's Association

One of the things I do not like about DU is how people just say stuff without knowing what they are talking about. You'd think their computers did not have search engine capabilities. I spent half a decade caring for someone with the problem, and have a very good idea what the progression is like. Spend five years of your life caring for a patient every single day and get back to us with your revised assessment.

His not being smart would explain how he graduated from Wharton, I guess!

[enough]

13. I have a very clear, intimately acquired knowledge of what Alzheimer's is really like.

I lived as daily personal caregiver for my father with Alzheimer's for a very long time. Also with my mother who had vascular dementia, also for a very long time.

It is my opinion that Trump's situation is neither of these things. He surely has a form of mental illness that is enabled by our society as long as the person has money. He suffers from never having to confront reality. This means that he has no respect for reality, and no interest in it. He assumes, apparently correctly, that this is of no importance. Trump's mental illness perfectly corresponds to the mental illness of our society.

To try to tag this with the lazy label of Alzheimer's or dementia, is to underestimate the facts.

[Warpy]

15. Actually, I do, extensive experience

but it's instructive for people to know the type of loss experienced by people with various forms of age related forgetfulness to know the difference in pattern. What I posted is very typical of earlier Alzheimer's, along with getting into the car and not remembering where to put the key and finishing a magazine article and realizing it didn't make any sense because you've forgotten the beginning.

Do note that the operative word here is "earllier." Diagnosis comes much later on.

Letting people know some of the differences keeps people from going into blind panics when they can't find their glasses or can't remember the last grandchild's name without prompting. I've seen people do just that, you know.

So sorry if you didn't get that from my post.

[gollygee]

11. That's not how Alzheimer's starts

For the three people in my family who have had it, it started with having difficulty remembering little things, and difficulty with language.

[mainer]

19. My father had Alzheimer's and in early stages, he was very much like Trump.

He would repeat rote phrases and would never admit there was anything wrong with him. He did a good job of covering up by seeming to be socially appropriate. But he lost complexity of speech and would just rely on an internal tape recorder to respond to just about everything.

I do think Trump has early dementia.

[0rganism]

4. i doubt he does, but a high % of his supporters might

he comes across as someone who just doesn't care and will say anything to anyone if he thinks it will serve him
and his followers eat it up

[L. Coyote]

9. Again, someone chimes in without knowing what they are saying. There are available facts online

and you realize we all can read them, right?

Alzheimer's disease accounts for near 3/4ths of dementia cases and one in nine people aged 65 years and older has some form of dementia.

[0rganism]

10. wow, that's quite the response there

well then, if you say so, yes yes indeed Mr. Trump must have Alzheimer's much like 3/4 of 1/9 (aka 1/12) of the population over 65. FACTS! WE CAN ALL READ THEM! IT IS THE INCONTROVERTIBLE TRUTH!

or maybe DJT is like the other 11/12 of the 65+ demographic except he doesn't give a shit about anything and he's ridiculously wealthy. your thread, you decide.

[kentauros]

5. I wouldn't call what he has as a problem with mental health.

Rather it is a problem related to education. The people most attracted to him are the epitome of what happens when you defund education for forty years, because he talks exactly the same way. Low vocabulary, low grammar skills, putting forth what appears to be a low-IQ. An "average" guy.

And it doesn't take a genius to be a conman, just a clever person who can learn the con.

[Hortensis]

20. Mental health professionals would and do.

See my post above about PERSONALITY DISORDER.

[kentauros]

22. I saw it, and don't agree with your assessment.

He's just a low-intelligence con-artist.

[Hortensis]

23. This is from PROFESSIONAL assessments, not mine.

If I know the media, worried about lawsuits no doubt, have mostly chosen to use the "word" temperament in referring to his problem, but many speakers and political analysts are skating a lot closer. I'm actually a little bit shocked that so many people have no idea. "Alzheimer's." Really?

Have you guys never heard of personality disorders? That at least 1 of every 20 suffers from one means they are not uncommon. It refers to only those who are actually diagnosed, and those have to tick off several clinical criteria.

I'm quite sure that you've all associated with someone with a personality disorder. Have you ever seen someone who--to a strange degree--cannot seem to stop quarreling with others and otherwise misbehaving so until she or he has to be fired? Perhaps know or have heard of someone so dependent that she cannot turn on and off her own lights without someone instructing her to or cannot leave the house because of fear of the outside world? You've seen obsessive-compulsive personality disorder in the movies.

How about sociopaths? They're not insane, they have a personality disorder and know perfectly well what they're doing. Only a few actually become serial killers. If you or someone you know has ever been victimized for no reason by an outstandingly manipulative and devious person, that may well have been a sociopath.

How about Trump, with his astonishing ignorance of everything that is not about him (almost everything!) and really strange notions, like the one that other countries should have nuclear bombs too, and the long hours he spends twittering insults?

[kentauros]

24. Unless you are his personal mental health professional,

it's still just an opinion on your part.

[Hortensis]

25. Nope. It's the opinion of professionals who

have felt the duty to warn America and reported on this, some of them very elevated in their fields. Those who have written consider him a textbook case acting out at the presidential race level and the diagnosis a slam dunk.

I'm merely reporting what I believe you should have learned long ago. Your post reveals that you didn't even google "Trump" and "narcissist" before posting.

Go read. It's not exactly a secret, which given his frequent use of lawsuits to smash people and organizations in his way says a lot. There's a lot of trash out there, so be aware that the word narcissist is thrown around a lot, almost all politicians have been called that by someone, but what we are talking about is a bundle of narcissistic traits so profound that it is considered a mental disorder by mental health professionals and that sufferers are dysfunctional as a result.

[Act_of_Reparation]

29. Have you ever been to a psychiatrist's office?

It doesn't sound like you have.

[Hortensis]

32. A question is, has Trump?

Most narcissists only seek professional help when they've gotten themselves in bad trouble. Natch.

And, no, I haven't. My half sister is a psychologist, but I've never "consulted."

[gollygee]

12. I think he very likely does have Alzheimer's

But I do think he will be the nominee because it won't be far enough along at that point to be clear to everyone what's going on. I don't think he'll be elected anyway, but I hope people consider who his VP candidate is.

[Gabi Hayes]

14. haven't read any of the thread, but this immediately came to mind:

Eisenhower was the last Pube Pres to not have a SERIOUS mental/organic brain malfunction==>leaving Ford out; he was just a leaf caught up in the corrupt madness of the Nixon phantasmagoria.

and Drumpf is clearly the craziest of them all. I know it's not cool to make the inevitable Hitler comps, but does anyone who pays attention wonder if he'll do Anything once he attains absolute power?

thinking along the lines of Caligula, Urban VI, or this guy?

[L. Coyote]

16. Donald Trump and Alzheimer's stages: How the disease progresses

Alzheimer's stages: How the disease progresses Donald Trump comparison.
By Mayo Clinic Staff

Alzheimer's disease tends to develops slowly and gradually worsens .... Alzheimer's disease affects most areas of your brain. Memory, thinking, judgment, language, problem-solving, personality and movement can all be affected by the disease.

There are five stages associated with Alzheimer's disease: preclinical Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer’s disease, mild dementia due to Alzheimer's, moderate dementia due to Alzheimer's and severe dementia due to Alzheimer's. .... these stages are only rough generalizations ... ymptoms and when they appear may vary. ....

People with mild cognitive impairment have mild changes in their memory and thinking ability. These changes aren't significant enough to affect work or relationships yet. People with MCI may have memory lapses when it comes to information that is usually easily remembered, such as conversations, recent events or appointments.

People with MCI may also have trouble judging the amount of time needed for a task, or they may have difficulty correctly judging the number or sequence of steps needed to complete a task. The ability to make sound decisions can become harder for people with MCI.

Trump is at that stage at least, and has symptoms of more progression:

Mild dementia due to Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's disease is often diagnosed in the mild dementia stage .... people may experience:

Memory loss for recent events. .... Difficulty organizing and expressing thoughts. Finding the right words to describe objects or clearly express ideas becomes increasingly challenging.

Stage 3: Mild cognitive impairment

Persons at this stage manifest deficits which are subtle, but which are noted by persons who are closely associated with the stage 3 subject. The subtle deficits may become manifest in diverse ways. For example, the person with mild cognitive impairment (MCl) may noticeably repeat queries. The capacity to perform executive functions also becomes compromised. Commonly, for persons who are still working, job performance may decline. For those who must master new job skills, decrements in these capacities may become evident. For example, the MCI subject may be unable to master new computer skills (Figure 3). MCI subjects who are not employed, but who plan complex social events, such as dinner parties, may manifest declines in their ability to organize such events.

Clinical Stages of Alzheimer’s
New York University’s Dr. Barry Reisberg outlines the seven major clinical stages of Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Reisberg is the Clinical Director of New York University’s Aging and Dementia Research Center. ..............

Stage 3
Other MCI subjects may manifest concentration deficits. Many persons with these symptoms begin to experience anxiety, which may be overtly evident.

The prognosis for persons with these subtle symptoms of impairment is variable, even when a select subject group who are free of overt medical or psychological conditions which might account for, or contribute to, the impairments are studied. A substantial proportion of these persons will not decline, even when followed over the course of many years. However, in a majority of persons with stage 3 symptoms, overt decline will occur, and clear symptoms of dementia will become manifest over intervals of approximately 2 to 4 years. In persons who are not called upon to perform complex occupational and/or social tasks, symptoms in this stage may not become evident to family members or friends of the MCI patient. Even when symptoms do become noticeable, MCI subjects are commonly midway or near the end of this stage before concerns result in clinical consultation. Consequently, although progression to the next stage in MCI subjects commonly occurs in 2 to 3 years, the true duration of this stage, when it is a harbinger of subsequently manifest dementia, is probably approximately 7 years.

Management of persons in this stage includes counseling regarding the desirability of continuing in a complex and demanding occupational role. ..............

[L. Coyote]

17. Parsing Ronald Reagan’s Words for Early Signs of Alzheimer’s

Parsing Ronald Reagan’s Words for Early Signs of Alzheimer’s
By LAWRENCE K. ALTMAN, M.D.MARCH 30, 2015

WASHINGTON — Even before Ronald Reagan became the oldest elected president, his mental state was a political issue. His adversaries often suggested his penchant for contradictory statements, forgetting names and seeming absent-mindedness could be linked to dementia.

......... Now a clever new analysis has found that during his two terms in office, subtle changes in Mr. Reagan’s speaking patterns linked to the onset of dementia were apparent years before doctors diagnosed his Alzheimer’s disease in 1994.

The findings, published in The Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease by researchers at Arizona State University ........

Visar Berisha and Julie Liss, professors of speech and hearing science at the university, compared transcripts of all 46 news conferences that Mr. Reagan held to the 101 sessions President George H. W. Bush held in his term.

The researchers assessed changes in the presidents’ speech patterns with a new algorithm based on a technique used by others to analyze changes in writing by novelists. ..............

in Mr. Reagan’s speech, two measures — use of repetitive words, and substituting nonspecific terms like “thing” for specific nouns — increased toward the end of Mr. Reagan’s presidency, compared with its start. A third measure, his use of unique words, declined.

The researchers’ methodology was not designed to determine whether the changes were present in Mr. Reagan’s rare early news conferences, Dr. Berisha said. Other factors — like a deliberate decision to reduce the complexity of his speaking style, or the injury, surgery and anesthesia from the assassination attempt made on him in 1981 — could account for the language changes they found, Dr. Berisha said.

In 1984, Mr. Reagan’s poor performance in his first presidential debate with Vice President Walter Mondale renewed questions about his mental capacity. A study published in 1988 suggested that Mr. Reagan had some cognitive impairment during his debates with President Jimmy Carter and Mr. Mondale, ............

[bjo59]

26. I think Trump is playing a game.

[Act_of_Reparation]

28. Obviously you're a medical professional with expertise in neurological disorders.

Obviously.

[L. Coyote]

35. Glad you noticed.

[Liberty Belle]

30. Trump's father had dementia. It is hereditary.

I've thought he has it for a while now, though he also has a narcissistic personalty disorder.

Some(though not all) people with Alzheimer's also lose inhibitions and say or do socially inappropriate things - boasting about his penis size in a presidential debate certainly would fit that definition.

He has continually denied saying things he said recently. He's not a stupid man, though he is a Machiavellian, manipulative one and a bigot. I believe he truly does forget what he says from day to day.

One more reason why his candidacy would truly be frightening.

There is only one hope for America if he is elected, and that is if the GOP-run Congress can find the grounds and the backbone to impeach him. We'd still be stuck with a republican vice president, but hopefully at least a sane one.

[L. Coyote]

34. Almost no one listened when, early on, we said this of Reagan's obvious symptoms.

That White House was a facade for the criminals in the basement doing what they wanted while the boss couldn't remember what day it was and his boss, Nancy, consulted fortune tellers. We all know how that worked out! Now, the same criminal gang wants a repeat. I don't think so, fool us once .....

[TeamPooka]

31. narcissistic sociopath more likely. nt

[melman]

33. Having grown up in the New York area

I was aware of Donald Trump way before he was a national figure. I've been seeing him on TV and in the papers for over 30 years.

And he seems like the exact same asshole he's always been. No change at all as far as I can see.

[ProudProgressiveNow]

36. Donald Trump is one sick piece of change... nt

[ColemanMaskell]

37. Kick this thread back into circulation because another post on same topic just started