In Trump’s Speeches, Signs of Cognitive Impairment
It’s important to clear up misconceptions about aging and cognitive decline.
In my recent Letter to the Editor of The New York Times, I address the behaviors described in Donald Trump’s speeches—like incoherency and confusion—which are not typical signs of normal aging. While age brings some cognitive changes, wisdom, emotional intelligence, and complex thinking often improve with age. The decline seen in Trump may be more concerning than just “normal” aging. Let’s challenge ageist assumptions and understand the facts!
Read my response here:
To the Editor:
The question of age should not be reignited by the increase in anger, rambling, incoherency and confusion in Donald Trump’s speeches as described in your article. There are real age-related changes in cognition, but these are not among them.
With age, it’s harder to learn and remember new things, one needs to pay more attention, multitasking is harder, strategies may be needed to help with memory, words can be harder to retrieve — but most older adults can do this. Attention span, language comprehension, usage and vocabulary don’t decline. Personality in general remains stable throughout life.
Emotional intelligence — the ability to understand one’s own and others’ feelings and emotions and use this information to guide thinking and actions — generally improves with age. Wisdom grows, imparting a larger store of coping mechanisms and problem-solving strategies.
I am a geriatrician who for over 40 years has cared for thousands of people far older than 78-year-old Donald Trump. With many, I have quite nuanced and on-point conversations about complex and difficult topics.
I have never spoken with or examined Mr. Trump, but the article reports a concerning progressive loss of cognitive function and behavioral control that is unlikely to be simply “normal” aging.
Rosanne M. Leipzig New York
The writer is a professor of geriatrics and palliative medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and the author of the book “Honest Aging.”
#HonestAging #EndAgeism #AgingWithDignity #RespectAging #WisdomWithAgeMy
Contribution to National Ageism Awareness Day (October 9th):
