Opinion: Trump's decline is clear and I can tell you how -- after all, I'm just as old as him (Robert Reich - Raw Story)

[ificandream]

By Robert Reich

I recently had a minor health scare — not unusual when you’re pushing 80. Everything is fine, at least for now.

But it got me thinking. Trump is 10 days older than me. He doesn’t look the model of robust health.

Even though we’re almost the same age, Trump has one big health problem I don’t have: his hatefulness. “I hate my opponents,” he says.

Hate is a corrosive. It eats away at one’s health. It attacks a hater’s central nervous system by releasing stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline. It compromises a hater’s cardiovascular system with high blood pressure and heart disease. It weakens immune systems, making the hater more vulnerable to all sorts of illnesses. It weakens gastro-intestinal systems, causing stomachaches, nausea, and other digestive problems. It leads to difficulties falling and staying asleep. It causes muscle tensions that harm the jaw and neck, such as clenching and teeth grinding, and contributes to headaches and migraines.

Read more: https://www.rawstory.com/trump-decline-2674204781/

[Ocelot II]

1. I don't see how anyone can remain in a constant state of rage

without causing himself enormous mental and physical damage. I'm surprised (and disappointed) that he's lasted this long.

[slightlv]

5. You're right, Ocelot... and I think it's been medically proven over the years.

But it's also one of the things that are effecting everyone in the U.S. right now, thanks to trump. He keeps his maga base riled up ALL the time, on purpose, to achieve his ideas. But the knockoff effect is that it hits US, too... those of us for whom care, nurturing, DEI, and empathy means more than mere words. There are, no doubt, more people on blood pressure meds and antidepressants than at any other time in the history of this country. And every bit of it is attributable to trump and his goons. I know during most of my 69 years, I was never bothered by high blood pressure. Depression runs in my family, and I've always been sensitive to anxiety. But I was never on blood pressure meds until trump "took office." Now, into his "2nd term", I've had to change up my meds 3x to try to find something that works, and so far we're still trying...

But even more than what it does to your physical condition, it can cause so much harm to those around you. I find myself popping off to hubby when I know it's just his dementia making itself known, and then turning around and apologizing profusely. I stay pretty much isolated because I don't trust myself around the stupidity all around here. None of that is good at my age. And I dare say, I don't think I'm the only one around here who's experienced some of this crap. I've said for years, and I still say... we should ALL be eligible for free PTSD counseling and aids when we finally see the end of trumps regime.

[Ocelot II]

6. I think the effect on people shows up in all the expressions of anger -

road rage, fights, even shootings. Everybody is angry, and often with good reason. We all have to find our joy or we'll be dragged down into a negative, destructive spiral. I make an effort to preserve what's left of my sanity through music and art and hanging out in nature, trying to remember all the positive and beautiful things that will survive no matter what happens. A French composer, Olivier Messaien, while imprisoned in a Nazi POW camp composed a piece called the "Quartet for the End of Time," which was performed in the camp by some other professional musicians who had also been imprisoned. It turned out to be one of the composer's most important works. I try to think of that kind of understanding of transcendence when I get depressed and discouraged at the state of things.

[slightlv]

7. Because our life has changed so drastically since hubby began his dementia descent,

a lot of the things that used to give me pleasure and release are no longer... or very rarely... accessible. My time is at night, once I get hubby settled in, to crawl into bed with my "nurse cat" who purrs me to sleep and gives me head bumps until I fall asleep. Lately, it's been taking an hour or so and sitting outside listening for the owl confabs that go on around here. Even on quiet nights, I listen closely to the noises.. trying to separate out the small yippee dogs who are expressing their displeasure at being out at night, the normal sounds of a small city, and the wild animals and birds that do hang around out here. If I'm lucky and hubby is sound asleep, I'll sometimes slip away to the next block up and hang out over the sidewalk railing above the little creek that flows here. The sound of water I find especially soothing...

[quaint]

8. Tough road. Wishing you peace and strength.

[usonian]

2. A good read.

But as one approaches 80, it’s not just lifespan that looms. It’s also health span — how many years you feel good, feel able, have your wits about you.

[CTyankee]

9. Well I just turned 86 and am in good health. I just tire more easily and have to be careful not to overdo.

Otherwise, I fall flat on my back on the bed. So I take regular breaks and don't overdo. I just don't tackle big jobs, I outsource to a house cleaner. And we're downsizing to an apartment in a retirement community, Masonicare. Luckily, our house has zoomed upward in value and we've upgraded it wisely.

[usonian]

10. I hit 76 and I've informed my daughter that hauling hundreds of pounds isn't fun any more, even a bit at a time.

It's sparse up here, so I'll chase down some help. But even downsizing is a real chore. I ask friends to come take stuff and they don't. A "measly" 50 miles.

I'll figure it out somehow. Living alone puts everything entirely on my shoulders, even the countless small things.

I'm looking to simplify. Ten years tells me what I actually use and what I never will (give or take the portable table saw).

I got a lot of tools to maintain former large homes, and when we broke up, I got a big home to hold all the tools. And I really had to farm out big engineering jobs like well pump electrical upgrades and a backup generator.

Small (maintenance) is beautiful.

Best wishes for health and happiness to you both.

[MiHale]

3. Trump lived his life angry....and eats rage for breakfast...

I’ve only know one narcissist for a long time. He was constantly ‘irritated’ by others no matter what they said or did. He verbally abused his wife and kids…and down to the dog.
I could now see his irritation was anger. Thought too much of himself to use drugs or alcohol…kept himself in pretty good shape or so it seemed.
47 years old massive heart attack seemingly out of nowhere. Heart just plain blew up.

Why has he (trump) lived this long?

[tanyev]

4. Normal people find hate corrosive. Sociopaths seem to find it invigorating.