Donald Trump's 'mental collapse' is being fuelled by two key factors, psychologist claims

A psychologist has asserted that two elements are driving what he described as Donald Trump's "collapse" whilst raising concerns about the president's cognitive capacity.

Clinical psychologist Dr Harry Segal disclosed on the most recent instalment of his Shrinking Trump YouTube series that he has been examining Trump's conduct from two angles. "First from his malignant narcissism, that is a severe narcissistic personality disorder which results in Trump's lack of empathy for others, his compulsive lying, his criminal behavior," he explained.

Nevertheless, the psychologist noted that more recently he and fellow clinical psychologist Dr John Gartner have been discussing Trump's "incipient dementia". This follows as Trump 'hides' hands amid health concerns despite efforts to dispel rumours.

"That is, we're starting to see some of the early signs of cognitive dissolution on Trump's part. So, we've been noting that and chronicling it," Dr Segal continued.

Epstein cause

Throughout Friday's instalment of Shrinking Trump, Segal initially highlighted the Epstein file controversy as an element purportedly driving Trump's "collapse". The Trump administration has encountered criticism in recent months for failing to fulfil a pledge to publicly release additional files connected to the investigation into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, reportsthe Mirror US.

In response to the criticism, Trump dismissed the matter as "merely another Democrat HOAX", repeatedly shifting the blame onto the Democrats. Commenting on Trump's reaction, Dr Segal stated: "I mean, it really is the wrong thing to do and clearly he's not listening to any advice. But it also makes me think of his cognitive decline because he's only been saying this now whenever asked about Epstein."

Democratic hoax?

Dr Segal further added: "He blamed Obama for it even though Epstein was prosecuted during his term. I mean, it doesn't make any sense politically or even cognitively. I mean, what does it mean that it's a Democratic hoax?".

The psychologist also suggested that recent court losses are exacerbating Trump's "collapse". Dr Segal discussed the Federal appeal court's decision to block Trump's use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport Venezuelans, as well as the recent ruling that Trump's tariffs are unconstitutional.

This follows warnings that Donald Trump shows 'classic signs' of a severe disease, with experts cautioning 'it will get worse'.

Referring to a clip from author Michael Wolff describing Trump's reaction to the court losses, Dr Segal said it "might give us an insight into Trump's psychological response to these what I would call narcissistic wounds."

Dr Segal elaborated: "In other words, he's not going to take it professionally like, 'I took these actions on tariffs for the people, and if the courts don't think it's right, okay, I'll readjust. I'll do something else.' No. No. No, no. He takes it as an insult, as a wound,".

Bad weather

In the footage, Wolff stated: "On Friday, the Federal Appeals Court ruled against Trump's unilateral power to set tariffs. Immediately soon as the ruling came down in the White House, this was one of those uh-oh moments, bad weather.

"Everybody knew things were about to get weird. Steve Bannon used to call it flip out time. What happens here is that you can't say no to Trump. As soon as you do that, as soon as that happens, he goes into a rage. A serious anger management weird moment happens.

"The idea that there are checks and balances, that notion of government, he doesn't exist in. He can't accept. I'm not even sure that he understands. This immediately becomes a personal attack. And he responds personally. He goes to war and he insists everyone around him join him in that war. He needs to undo. He needs to punish. He needs to triumph. He needs to strike back in every possible way."

Dr Segal observed: "It speaks to a kind of fragility, doesn't it? It's kind of you can't take a joke on steroids. You know, any any loss means he's raging around the White House, he's saying crazy things and no one is allowed to object to him."

The psychologist concluded: "We know that he's losing ground terribly. We know that he's losing ground cognitively. There's a kind of race to see. Does he lose power before he becomes cognitively disorganized?".

'Fit to execute the duties'

He warned: "If he continues to deteriorate, there may be a point where um he won't be able to serve at all. But we'll have to see."

Despite Dr Segal's concerns, the White House doctor concluded in April that Trump is "exhibiting excellent cognitive and physical health and is fully fit to execute the duties of the Commander-in-Chief and Head of State."

As part of a nearly five-hour annual physical, Trump received several blood tests, a cardiac examination and ultrasounds as well as neurological tests on his mental status, nerves, motor and sensory function and reflexes.

He was also given the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA), and scored 30 out of 30.

It comes after a lip reader revealed Karoline Leavitt's blunt one-word demand to Trump's 13 year old granddaughter.