Reply #18: He could be bipolar

[Nancy Waterman]

and would therefore need a mood stabilizer and possibly and an antidepressant.

But his underlying narcissim, irritability, substance abuse history, and his inability to ever accept responsibility for anything lead me to think he also has a characterological disorder: Borderline Personality Disorder. Meds can only go so far in masking basic characterological traits. (This is in contrast to someone who may be depressed and responds well to antidepressants which bring him/her back to normal functioning. Or even to someone who is bipolar and responds well to a mood stabilizer/antidepressant combo and becomes pretty normal.) The borderline often remains thin skinned, blames everyone else, takes things personally, and remains relatively unstable emotionally, though meds may help somewhat.