Twenty-one dreams in this dream collection were similar to my initial dream which launched this project, where the dreamers found themselves caring for either an impaired or childlike president:

I had several where he came for advice I was comforting him, calming/talking him down, petting him. I was shocked, had to shake it off when I woke ~ Anonymous

I had a dream I was on a plane next to #Trump & he kept falling asleep with his head on my shoulder, so I had to push him against the window and straighten out his legs, so he wouldn’t get cramps.[i]

I don’t like Trump but I had a dream that I was critiquing him and his actions from a place of deep empathy and lo and behold he was actually listening and taking it on board! Not what I would have expected. ~ Anonymous

Some of these dreams might be viewed as simple wish fulfillment: wishes to influence the national trajectory for the better, to extricate themselves from anger, to remind kind and “good” in the midst of a troubled and polarized era.

Had a dream that I was Trump’s trusted advisor and I vetoed anything he said so I actually changed him as a human being to reflect my beliefs so that’s fun[ii]

But others sense that are dangers to extending their empathy.

I dreamed I was at some social event with him, and he might have been my father, or maybe he was an official escort for the evening? He was strangely needy, I felt strongly that he wanted me to like him, and was also angry that I wouldn’t approve of him. I felt both sorry for him, in his vulnerability, and also aware that he was capable of great tantrums. ~ Anonymous

Guggenbühl-Craig, in his book “The Emptied Soul: On the Nature of the Psychopath” writes about an instinctive response to public displays of stunted moral development:

Another secondary symptom is their ability to evoke pity, the same kind of pity we… experience for the helpless, and sick children. How can one help but pity these people particularly when one sense the background depression and air of despair? They seem completely helpless, lost in a world where they do not belong. Again and again they try to adjust and cope, in a fashion that always falls a bit shy of the mark. They are the eternal strangers, arousing in each of us a longing to help, a feeling which we experience with completely helpless human beings. Often this pity creates difficulties, and many is the person who falls prey to it. We often try to be kind to these ‘poor’ people and they are ‘poor’ people – our pity is justifiable.[iii]

Several dreamers contend with the notion that guidance and loving care may not always be effective:

I had a dream last night that I was able to explain to Donald Trump why you shouldn’t insult your opponents in debates, because I explained it to him step-by-step like he was five.[iv]

I dreamed last night that Donald Trump was dying and I was called to the White House to provide spiritual direction to him in his final days, but I couldn’t get him to pay attention to anything I was saying. He kept saying he wanted to take me out to eat Trump steaks.[v]

Guggenbühl-Craig elaborates:

The problem, however, is that psychopaths readily manipulate those around them through just such pity. Women are often victimized: mothering instincts are aroused, or the archetype of the nurse is constellated. They want to protect and care for the poor, sick thing and understandably so, for psychopaths strike protective chords and speak to the desire to help and heal. Those who have to deal with psychopaths readily succumb to savior fantasies. [vi]

And for those who see themselves as resisting this administration in the daylight, many seem to find themselves caught up in just such savior fantasies while they sleep:

I had a dream last night that I was Trump’s personal therapist/handler. I was supposed to be with him pretty much all the time. He slept a lot and got confused a lot and cried about his mother a lot. At one point we were at a yacht race and Trump and Biden were supposed to be doing commentary for ESPN about it. They were supposed to be at odds with each other. Biden was all keyed up, but Trump just layed his head on the broadcast desk and fell asleep.[vii]

i had a dream donald trump was in love with me and i had to choose between my moral obligation to get close to him so that i could use my new platform for Good and my physical repulsion to him[viii]

I had a dream that Donald trump was a girl and i ran into her, she was crying because she messed something up and no one would talk to her. Except me, i talked to her and calmed her down. I was basically superwoman[ix]

Many dreamers seemed to feel great conflict about assuming this role in their dreams. Some experienced that distress when they woke, others found solutions within their dreams to extricate themselves from the position they had unconsciously assumed.

I dreamed I was Donald Trump’s adult babysitter. My job was keeping him from wondering off in crowds and bringing him a Diet Coke when he threw a tantrum. Readers: I lost him in a park.[x]

 

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[i] @janieW17

[ii] @allyciesielski

[iii] Guggehbühl-Craig, The Emptied Soul, p. 89

[iv] @Laertes1732

[v] @michaelfrost6

[vi] Guggenbühl-Craig, The Emptied Soul p. 89

[vii] @RussianDhar

[viii] @smittynibs

[ix] @Groovyangg_

[x] @HeardFC