"What they were looking for was to give two fingers to the elite, to the establishment."
Edwards warned people might go through a "mass disillusionment" with Trump after some time in his presidency, however.
While disillusionment was normal for all presidents, he believed there was risk of it to a greater degree with Trump because he had promised so many "quite extreme things" it was unlikely he would be able to deliver.
But it was hard to be sure, with a new era in politics approaching.
"We're in new territory here, so we can't presume there's anything that's going to happen with Trump supporters that's in line with previous presidents."
Californian Danny Osborne, a psychology lecturer at Auckland University, also believed supporters would be feeling "mighty good" about the election.
"I imagine they're quite happy with the election results . . . there may be a little extra kick in their step.
"It feels good to have your world views validated and to be validated on such a large scale."
But Osborne believed the feelings would be "relatively short-lived".
On the flipside, Clinton supporters would be in a state of "Trumpression".
For Louisiana woman Amanda Richards, who has lived in New Zealand for about seven years, the tears were still falling a day after the election.
Richards has been crying during work and has had coworkers checking on her emotional state throughout the day.
She believed pouring her emotions into her activism would help her get through the depression, and said she would be more "focused" a week on.
Osborne said the Trump blues were very much real, but only a temporary state of mind.
"We are seeing a temporary fluctuation of people's moods.
"People will be disappointed for a few weeks but they will be acting as they normally do within six months.
"Polls were showing Clinton was going to win. We have been confronted with something we didn't expect and is aversive."
Kyle MacDonald, a psychotherapist and Herald mental health columnist, said if people were prone to depression or anxiety, the Trump effect would certainly "feed into this".
"There is an increase in general anxiety and fear.
"I cannot imagine what it must be like to belong to a minority in the US today. Those people will understandably be anxious and worried."
MacDonald feared an increase would emerge of "Trump-type behaviour" in America, such as bullying and racism.
Trumpinology
Trumpression: A depressed mood or loss of interest in daily activities as a result of Donald Trump winning the US presidential election. To treat the affliction, try taking these steps:
• Focus on actions that can better your community.
• Take a step back from the news and think about "how much is healthy for me?"
• Distract yourself with something positive such as donating to a cause, to reaffirm your values.
• Be more proactive by forming groups and educating yourself about the issues and policies in America.
