I feel like I am being judged for using a common term to describe one possible explanation for poor judgement. (if it is hurtful to use the word 'poor' as well, then there is really no way to even discuss the matter).

I changed the title of the thread from 'character flaw' for 'poor judgement', which is a very common association and not one I invented, to 'character anomaly', which is not a common expression at all but seems less likely to incur judgemental responses, but there is still the word 'poor' in front of judgement, and that could also be a 'loaded term'...

I feel like I've stumbled into a tangle of political correctness, but really the whole point is that people with poor judgement are judged harshly by and large by society, their friends and family and often by themselves. I don't see any way to escape that predicament. Is it painful to talk about painful matters?

During my last episode I ended up getting into legal trouble for the first time in my life.

I've also had a history of making poor choices of who I got involved with even before my bipolar manifested itself in my 40s but I would call that less poor judgement than the kind of situation I am facing now.

Of course there are degrees of poor choices and I do feel I've been astonishingly poor at learning from mistakes and further that my decision making has gotten worse over time rather than better.

Also as a personal matter, I've noticed that my poor decision from episodes leaks into whatever sense of normalcy I have left. Now I wonder about all my decision making.