1/I've posted concerns about the president's mental fitness for duty. This is not meant as a partisan attack. Others have written extensively on this and I will provide some references for further reading. I'd like to share my background, why I care, and why I'm alarmed.
2/As an RN I've cared for patients w/ various mental illnesses & dementia along the spectrum of coherence to psychosis & in the case of dementia: memory loss, anger, paranoia, confusion, eventually catatonia. Respect & compassion were always my practice along w/ self protection.
3/Mental illness is also personal. It is a multi-generational fact of my life. Sitting at the bedside of a sibling; matted hair, ragged clothing, open sores, cellulitis, uncontrolled crying-my heart breaking; I KNOW the value of conveying the inherent dignity of every person.
4/Making a diagnosis is not in my scope of practice as an RN. Nor could any clinician do so w/o conducting an eval. However, I am qualified to recognize warning signs & to report my concerns. My comments on Trump's fitness for duty arise from concerns of observed behaviors.
5/A recent @CNN segment w/ @jaketapper discussed @gtconway3d 's article in the Atlantic. It was implied that claims about Trump's mental capacity would be used in the 2020 election as a political weapon - and that we shouldn't speculate, label, or stigmatize.
6/Let's get this straight-we CAN speculate that Trump has narcissistic personality disorder as @gtconway3d did using evidence to support his thesis. We can also speculate that Trump is experiencing cognitive decline and balance issues based on observable evidence such as...
7/shrinking vocab, mixing up words, repeating himself in a short span of time, tangential speech, appearing confused a/b what he's doing, tilting/leaning, foot drag, etc. We can also speculate about his mental state based on temperament and whether he seems grounded in reality.
8/We have a right to be concerned. If a pilot seemed impaired, we'd want that individual evaluated. What about the leader of the free world, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, the one w/ the nuke codes. What if we suspect some sort of impairment? What's our recourse?
9/Serious journalists should take care not to make light of the gravity of these concerns. It's true we CANNOT DIAGNOSE the president. We CAN RING THE ALARM BELLS. To those of us who've seen mental incapacity in patients or family members, we are alarmed.
10/We need @VP or Trump's family to have him evaluated. I believe an honest evaluation would show he's unfit for duty #25thAmendment This is not political, it's about national security. Those who do nothing to help are taking advantage of DJT for personal gain #malignantenabling
11/ Further reading: dangerouscase.org/wp-content/upl… adutytowarn.org usatoday.com/story/opinion/…
And - @TomJChicago @JohnMTalmadgeMD have extensive posts about this topic.
And - @TomJChicago @JohnMTalmadgeMD have extensive posts about this topic.
12/Whether through his rapid decompensation, impeachment, 25th Amendment, or the 2020 election...I hope/pray he is removed before the harm to country (and potentially planet) are irreparable.
