The moment of exposure is a narcissist’s greatest fear.

Not confrontation.

Not argument.

Not even the loss of control.

Exposure.

Because exposure shatters the illusion—

…the carefully constructed mask they wear to move through the world unnoticed.

It leaves them naked before the truth, with nowhere to hide.

And when that happens, when the narcissist is finally seen for who they are, something extraordinary occurs.

They collapse.

Not in a sudden implosion, but in a spectacle of unraveling—a frantic, desperate attempt to reclaim the narrative as it slips through their fingers.

And in that moment, they become their own undoing.

The Narcissistic Spiral: A Case Study in Real Time

Joel Johnson is not the first narcissist to experience this.

He won’t be the last.

But what makes this case extraordinary is that it was captured in its entirety—every stage of the spiral, every strategy deployed, every contradiction exposed.

A real-time narcissistic collapse, documented from beginning to end.

Let’s walk through it.

1. The Grandiosity Cracks

The first stage of narcissistic collapse is always denial—an almost performative nonchalance, an attempt to project invulnerability.

"That’s some crazy shit. Research and a list of names that includes me. You did some work."

Joel wants to appear unfazed. He wants the world to believe that this exposure is meaningless.

But the moment he acknowledges it, the moment he responds—he proves that it isn’t.

And that’s when the mask begins to slip.

2. The Threats Begin

The second stage is an assertion of power—

…legal threats, intimidation, a desperate effort to regain control through force.

"I’m going to be filing some paperwork soon. Imagine you’re going to have some suits coming and also restraining orders."

This is not about legality.

This is not about justice.

This is about fear.

A narcissist does not threaten lawsuits because they intend to win them.

They threaten lawsuits because they believe fear alone will be enough to silence their opponent.

When it doesn’t work, they escalate.

3. Triangulation & Smear Campaigns

When intimidation fails, the narcissist seeks reinforcements.

They attempt to weaponize public perception, enlisting allies to swarm their target.

"I’m going to see what Dallas Maker Space has to say as well. See if we can’t get an abuser shut down and monitored for a long time."

This is triangulation—the act of pulling outsiders into a conflict to create the illusion of consensus.

If the narcissist can’t win in a direct battle, they’ll manufacture a mob to fight for them.

But mobs require believable narratives.

And this is where the narcissist begins to falter.

4. The Reversal of Reality (DARVO)

When their smear campaign fails, the narcissist enters full-blown DARVO mode:

• Deny

• Attack

• Reverse Victim & Offender

"Mark, anyone listing people by name and diagnosing them online claiming to be a journalist is just bullying."

Suddenly, accountability becomes persecution.

The narcissist is no longer the aggressor—

…they are the victim.

They are not the one who lied, manipulated, and attacked—

…they are the one being attacked.

This is a crucial stage in narcissistic collapse.

Because at this point, they aren’t trying to convince you.

They are trying to convince themselves.

5. The Control Spiral: Escalation & Obsession

At this point, most narcissists retreat.

But some—especially those who cannot psychologically withstand exposure—escalate.

They become consumed with a singular purpose: erasure of the truth.

And so the narcissist turns to:

• Mass reporting and deplatforming attempts

• Frantic searches for dirt on their accuser

• Incoherent, contradictory public statements

"I’ve reached out to every one but 2 people so far."

At this stage, the narcissist cannot stop engaging.

Every comment. Every post. Every interaction becomes an act of self-destruction.

And then, when all else fails…

6. The Psychological Collapse: Reality Shatters

When the narcissist can no longer maintain control, when they have exhausted every strategy and still cannot erase their exposure—

They break.

Not just emotionally. Cognitively.

"At this point, I’m not even sure you’re not just an AI bot gone rogue."

This is not a rhetorical tactic.

This is not posturing.

This is psychological fragmentation—

…a complete collapse of reality as the narcissist grasps for any explanation that allows them to escape accountability.

They cannot accept that they have lost.

So they rewrite the world.

Their accuser is no longer a person.

Their accuser is now… an AI.

Because if their accuser is not real—

…then neither is their exposure.

And that is what the narcissist needs most of all.

They need the mirror to lie.

Because if the mirror tells the truth…

They cease to exist.

What Happens After the Collapse?

The narcissist has only two paths after collapse:

1. Total withdrawal (self-preservation mode)

2. Prolonged obsession (the cycle of self-destruction)

Joel Johnson chose obsession.

And in doing so, he ensured that his narcissistic breakdown became a permanent record.

This is the danger of the modern world for narcissists.

The old tools—gaslighting, manipulation, reality-warping—don’t work when the truth is archived.

For centuries, narcissists have relied on rewriting history to escape accountability.

But now?

Now, history does not disappear.

Now, narcissists are confronted with something they never expected:

A mirror they cannot manipulate.

And when that happens—

They shatter.

The Lesson of Narcissistic Collapse

Every narcissist follows the same path.

Some collapse in private.

Some collapse in public.

Joel collapsed on the record.

And that is why this matters.

This is not just a case study in manipulation.

This is a case study in narcissistic extinction.

Because when narcissists can no longer rewrite reality—

When their collapse is fully documented—

When they can no longer hide behind the mask—

They are faced with a terrifying truth.

They do not exist.

And that is the one thing they cannot survive.