"I went through the John F. Kennedy medical records in his archives — I believe I'm the first psychiatrist to do so," Ghaemi says. "His behaviors have been well known — his hypersexuality, his high energy — what I do is to go into the medical records and show how those symptoms really are consistent with this temperament called hyperthymic temperament in psychiatry, which means mild manic symptoms all the time. And then I base these diagnoses not just on these symptoms, but family history, because these illnesses are genetic."
The struggle with mental health that some people endure can take a toll, but some leaders — and Ghaemi's book counts the 35th president among them — emerge from that struggle more sure of themselves.
"In the case of Kennedy, I extensively describe his treatment with steroids, which worsened his manic symptoms. He was even treated with a neuroleptic, an anti-psychotic, when he was in the White House, for a period of depression," Ghaemi says.
After having seen some of his posts over the past year that was my assessment as well. Or he was doing serious drugs (or a combination of all). He seems extremely troubled and we don’t need more unwell people representing our country.