By now, everyone has an idea of what TDS stands for and who seems to exhibit it. For the very few of you who have been hiding under a rock (or shielded by legacy media), TDS stands for Trump Derangement Syndrome, most exhibited by predominantly progressive leftists and never-Trumpers. Although not a true diagnostic clinical term, it describes much of what we are seeing with a small portion of the population. To understand its inception and “diagnostic” criteria, we need to dig back to the Bush era.
Some of you, unfortunately, never experienced the genius of Charles Krauthammer while he still blessed this earth. He was a former liberal psychiatrist turned Pulitzer Prize-winning conservative columnist who also provided commentary to many news outlets. He passed away in 2018 from small intestine cancer. Krauthammer coined the term “Bush Derangement Syndrome” in 2003, stating, “[BDS] is the acute onset of paranoia in otherwise normal people in reaction to the policies, the presidency—nay—the very existence of George W. Bush.” Replace “George W. Bush” with “Donald Trump” and the same syndrome is alive and well today. There is something pathological about people’s reactions to the mere mention or presence of President Trump.
Clinicians have a broad definition of what delusions and psychosis are. It is no longer a clear-cut definition because “truth” has now become subjective. Reality is now replaced with “my truth” or “your truth”—essentially claiming that lived experiences trump objective reality. We see this often within the transgender community. There is no longer a scientific, biological determination for what makes a person male or female. We now identify by how we feel. Because of this new norm, clinicians will disagree on what is considered a delusion.
Clinicians like myself, who believe the baseline for all humanity is objective reality—and from that baseline we determine what is real and not real—will consider that TDS is a very real prognosis for someone who has an adverse reaction to the mere mention of Donald Trump. Why? Because the reaction is based on lived experiences through propaganda. It is not rooted in reality.
For example, for many, Trump is a Nazi. Why? Because for years (and still) legacy media shared an altered clip of Trump stating that Nazis were “very fine people.” From this altered reality, a delusional mindset was birthed. If this person were to be given the truth—the entire clip rather than the edited version—they would conclude that Trump is far from a Nazi. They would be able to work from a baseline of truth and determine a factual understanding. Unfortunately, we are no longer given truth. Much of what we see and hear is now altered.
One thing I have witnessed with clients is that it’s problematic to demolish a value because a person’s entire trajectory is built from that belief system. You’re ultimately asking a person to admit their existence was built on faulty ground and to start over—and most times, you’re starting over on the side you’ve fought so adamantly against. That’s exactly what someone with TDS would have to do to be “cured.” At some point, they would have to step back and question whether or not their strong, steadfast hatred toward President Trump is warranted. It is equivalent to someone with schizophrenia coming to terms with the fact that the voices are just in their head and not real.
There is no group more invested in their hatred for Trump than the transgender community. Many on the left who identify as trans have built their existence on a lie that they can “choose” their sex. One could argue that these individuals suffer from comorbidity: TDS along with Gender Dysphoria. They will need to break down two walls in order to succumb to reality.
Helen Joyce was a guest on the Peter Boghossian podcast last year, where she so perfectly stated that parents of trans children (no such thing, of course) will be the ones to fight to the bitter end of this delusion because they have the most to lose. These parents helped facilitate the lie that their child can choose their sex and would have to admit they ruined their child’s life if they were to step back from this belief—a belief compounded by TDS.
So what’s the cure? How do we help people with TDS, and is there hope?
It’s extremely difficult to combat delusions with facts. As I stated, TDS victims operate from their own “truths”—facts have no place in their feelings. Providing data or receipts will only be met with insults and emotional outbursts. In my experience with clients with TDS, only two things have helped: Socratic questioning and prayer.
Socratic questioning helps a person engage in critical thinking and explore ideas—it’s excellent in helping someone examine their own beliefs. The questions are philosophical by nature, designed to help someone gain a deeper understanding of their values. When I’ve engaged with clients in asking these types of questions, I’m usually met with confusion in their own viewpoints. This leads to a client further examining their beliefs and spending more time researching where their values stemmed from. Keep in mind, in order to perform this line of questioning effectively, one must have patience and empathy. The goal isn’t to win the conversation—it’s to help them open their eyes to delusional thought patterns.
If Socratic questioning is not something you can engage in, then let’s not forget prayer. It’s the spiritual support to help with the worldly battle. It’s the gift we’re given when we have nowhere else to turn. Ultimately, TDS is only cured by an intervention—and that intervention takes your deeds and God’s love. How many people did you witness open their eyes to the delusion of “Orange man bad”? Many woke up during the Covid era and so much of that awakening happened because of collective prayer when reasoning and facts didn’t work.
Ultimately, there is hope. The proof: the 2024 election.
This Story originally came from humanevents.com