Psychotherapist says ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ is real pathology, plaguing 75 percent of his patients

Manhattan-based psychotherapist Jonathan Alpert told Fox News on Friday that “Trump Derangement Syndrome” (TDS) is a real psychological issue he has seen firsthand in his practice, with three-quarters of his patients exhibiting symptoms.

During an interview with “The Faulkner Focus,” Alpert said patients have come into his office exhibiting symptoms of mental distress stemming from their fear or anger toward President Donald Trump. 

“This is a profound pathology and I would even go so far to call it the defining pathology of our time,” Alpert said. 

TDS is a term generally used by Trump supporters to disparage what they view as hysterical or irrational critics of the president.

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Alpert described some of the symptoms he’s observed in patients he believes are suffering from TDS. 

“It doesn’t take long for me to pick up on this: people are obsessed with Trump, they’re fixated, they’re hyper-fixated on Trump. And they talk about some of the features of this disorder — they can’t sleep, they feel traumatized by Mr. Trump, they feel restless,” he said.

“I had one patient who said she couldn’t enjoy a vacation because anytime she saw Trump in the news or on her device, she felt triggered,” he added.

Alpert explained that for these patients, the mere mention or image of Trump triggers intense mental distress. 

“And Trump is the trigger for many of these people, and to be that fixated on a figure, on a person, it’s simply not healthy,” he said.

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In an opinion piece he wrote for The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, Alpert elaborated on how this pathology manifests in his view. 

“Clinically, the presentation aligns with anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders: persistent intrusive thoughts, emotional dysregulation and impaired functioning. Patients describe sleepless nights, compulsive news checking and physical agitation. Many confess they can’t stop thinking about Donald Trump even when they try,” he wrote.

“Call it ‘obsessive political preoccupation’—an obsessive-compulsive spectrum presentation in which a political figure becomes the focal point for intrusive thoughts, heightened arousal and compulsive monitoring,” Alpert added.

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The psychotherapist said he initially thought TDS was just an ideological reaction to a political figure they disagreed with. However, he came to realize that “the symptoms took on a more clinical shape.”

“What once looked like outrage now presents as a fixation that distorts perception and consumes attention,” he wrote.

Alpert added that around three-quarters of his current patients manifest symptoms of TDS.

“Well, three-quarters of my patients will present with a lot of these symptoms and within probably five minutes of seeing me, their hatred for Trump comes up,” he told Faulkner. “So, if you’re that hyper-focused on Trump, that’s a real issue.”

Trump himself has frequently accused Democratic and media foes of harboring TDS.