Compulsive lying - personality disorder

[Andy008]

I have known a guy for several years now ( i used to work with him) and he still drinks in many of the pubs back where I used to live. Myself and several other people have noticed that he literally cannot seem to stop lying, so much so that he does not seem to consciously realise he's doing it. Whilst everyone lies to a degree, usually so-called "white lies", this bloke seems to have even convinced himself that what he's saying is true, it's hard to describe without meeting him, but it's almost like he's created his own fantasy world. Is lying to this extent a sign of mental illness?

[smudge]

*exept

[smudge]

*except even - must change my spec's!

[Blanket]

I have met some compulsive liars in my time, too. It's always quite embarrassing, as they have sometimes included me in their lies and told other people that I was involved in some event they have made up, and I have had to agree with it...or felt I had to, to avoid them looking stupid.
I had a very close friend who I had spoken to about lies that I had caught him out on. He confessed, and blamed it on the way he was treated as a child. We discussed it yet he continued. The last one I could bear was, when I asked him if he had �100 that I had lent him, instead of saying 'no, not at the moment', he decided to say 'I can't come round because my Mum thinks I'm dead'. I was amazed by the childishness of this 'my dog ate my homework' lie! He said he had to go round his mother's to calm her instead of seeing me. He never left his house all night as I could see him on-line. I decided to leave the friendship there. A great shame. This man is 43 years old! & he still blames his Dad for his lying instead of taking responsibility for his words. He hides behind a label of Bi-polar disorder (I have known him for about 10 years & I've never seen symptoms of BPD). Instead, I believe he has border-line personality disorder/histrionic personality disorder . I have always made allowances for his behaviours as know he had a difficult past, but ultimately, he is an adult & has to be responsible for his actions & words.
It's sad, but most people know he is a liar & he has no solid friendships because of it...yet he thinks he is a 'victim'. When a relationship goes wrong, he pretty much 'checks in' to a mental health hospital instead of accepting that being dumped can be devastating, but is not a mental illness - it is distress. And his doctor knows that his acting out will escalate, so agrees for him to go to hospital, thus reinforcing the cycle of 'victim'.
I felt I could no longer cope with his lies, & he has lost another friendship.Once again, he will perceive