Veterans of the Storm: A Manifesto for What the System Missed

Veterans of the Storm: A Manifesto for What the System Missed

**By Theresa Faulkner-Alfonzo**

Veterans of the Storm is not just a program. It's not another awareness campaign or a rebranded suicide prevention handout. It's a system built from the ashes of silence, neglect, and oversight — created by someone who lived through the hell no one talks about.

I am Theresa Faulkner-Alfonzo, a United States Navy veteran and the creator of Veterans of the Storm. I developed this program after realizing something no one else was saying out loud: **there is not a single suicide prevention program in the country that addresses ADHD and RSD (Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria).** Not one.

That silence is killing people.

The Missing Link That Costs Lives

I didn’t find this in a textbook or some mental health conference. I found it by living it. I’ve survived the darkest parts of ADHD — not the hyperactive childhood version they warn parents about, but the **internalized, misunderstood, emotionally volatile adult version** that ruins relationships, destroys self-worth, and pushes people to the edge.

I lived with untreated ADHD and RSD for most of my life. And what I now know — what this program is built on — is this:

> **The suicide crisis has a missing chapter. And ADHD is on the front page.**

Are you telling me people had to die before professionals could admit they missed something this big?

We’re not just talking about an oversight. We’re talking about systemic neglect. Every major suicide prevention initiative talks about poverty, isolation, and even internet access — but somehow **misses one of the highest-risk neurological profiles out there.**

ADHD increases suicide risk. That’s a fact.

RSD adds another layer of volatility and emotional collapse. That’s another fact.

So why isn’t it in the conversation?

Because people still think ADHD is about being distracted.

Because they still think it’s a kid’s disorder.

Because the **DSM-5 refuses to reflect the truth of what adult ADHD looks like** — and the mental health system just keeps playing along.

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What ADHD and RSD Really Look Like

Let me tell you what it’s really like.

It’s not about forgetting keys or losing focus. It’s emotional pain that never shuts off. It’s your brain telling you that every criticism is a death sentence. That you’re worthless. That you’ll never be enough. That you are a burden just for existing.

RSD isn’t about being “sensitive.” It’s about **emotional collapse.** It’s psychological warfare — except you’re the only one on the battlefield. There’s no enemy. No escape. Just you, your nervous system, and a flood of pain that feels like the end of everything.

And the worst part? Most people are going through this in silence. Why?

Because they were told ADHD is just trouble concentrating.

Because their doctors never asked the right questions.

Because the system only knows how to diagnose children.

There is no **official write-up for adult ADHD.**

There are no **clinically trained professionals who specialize in ADHD + emotional dysregulation.**

And the **DSM-5?** It uses **slightly modified children’s criteria** for adults — and pretends like that’s good enough.

It’s not good enough.

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Medical System’s Failure

Let’s break this down. Why does this matter so much?

Because when you ignore adult ADHD, you misdiagnose it. You call it depression. You call it bipolar. You call it anxiety. You medicate it wrong. You treat it wrong. You misunderstand the person behind the symptoms.

And worst of all? **You miss the signs that someone is emotionally drowning.**

This is personal for me. I’ve watched my own life fall apart more than once because nobody — not one medical professional — saw what was really going on. I wasn’t lazy. I wasn’t dramatic. I wasn’t unstable.

> **I was fighting for my life with a brain that kept turning on itself.**

I’ve spoken to veterans who were on the brink. People who couldn’t explain what was happening to them, but knew they couldn’t take one more emotional breakdown. People who were misdiagnosed, overmedicated, or told to “try harder.”

Do you know what it does to someone when the world tells them they’re the problem — while they’re drowning in a condition that no one even thinks to screen for?

It’s senseless. It’s negligent. And it’s preventable.

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Why Veterans of the Storm Exists

Veterans of the Storm was created because I couldn’t live with the silence anymore. Because **once you know the truth, doing nothing becomes its own kind of crime.**

I’ve lived with ADHD.

I’ve lived with RSD.

I’ve developed PTSD.

And I can tell you right now: **those conditions together are a recipe for emotional collapse.**

But when I looked for support — when I searched suicide prevention programs, veteran resources, therapy options — I found the same recycled checklists and symptom wheels. Nothing about ADHD. Nothing about emotional overload. Nothing about the internal chaos we live with every single day.

So I built it myself.

Veterans of the Storm isn’t just a resource. It’s a response. A refusal to keep waiting for the system to catch up while people are dying in the meantime.

This program recognizes that:

- Emotional dysregulation is real

- ADHD in adults looks nothing like it does in kids

- RSD is not a character flaw — it’s a neurological vulnerability

- Suicide risk is higher in undiagnosed neurodivergent adults

And most of all — this program doesn’t ask you to prove your pain. It names it. It validates it. It gives it a place to land.

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What This Program Offers

Veterans of the Storm is built on five pillars:

1. **Recognition** – Naming ADHD and RSD as legitimate suicide risk factors

2. **Education** – Teaching veterans and professionals what emotional overload actually is

3. **Connection** – Creating peer-led support where silence isn’t required

4. **Rebuilding** – Offering tools for emotional governance, not just symptom management

5. **Prevention** – Giving people a reason to hold on — not just survive

This isn’t therapy. It’s not a hotline. It’s a bridge. A system designed by someone who lived it — for the people still stuck in it.

To the Ones in the Storm Right Now

If you’re reading this and something inside you says, “This is me” — I want you to know you’re not alone. You’re not broken. And you’re definitely not weak.

You’ve been carrying emotional weight that no one else could see. You’ve been surviving a system that never even learned your name. But just because they missed it doesn’t mean it isn’t real.

Your emotions aren’t the enemy.

Your sensitivity isn’t a flaw.

And your pain isn’t invisible — **not here.**

Veterans of the Storm sees you.

And we’re not letting you disappear.

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Final Words

I didn’t want to start a movement. I wanted answers. I wanted help. I wanted peace. But the world had no place for what I was going through — so I made one.

This isn’t a theory. It’s not a diagnosis sheet. This is a lifeline — for veterans, for civilians, for anyone caught in the storm of emotional overload and feeling like the only way out is to disappear.

ADHD is not a joke.

RSD is not weakness.

And silence is not protection — it’s a coffin.

If the medical community won’t say it, I will:

> **You missed something huge.**

And now that it’s been named, we don’t get to ignore it anymore.

Veterans of the Storm is here.

Not as a cure — but as a signal flare.

We are not casualties.

We are survivors.

And we are taking the storm apart — one truth at a time.

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ADHD & Suicide Risk

General Risk: Adults with ADHD are 5 times more likely to attempt suicide than neurotypical peers. ​

Women with ADHD: Approximately 23.5% have attempted suicide, compared to 3.3% of women without ADHD. ​

Men with ADHD: About 8.5% have attempted suicide, versus 2.1% of men without ADHD. ​

⚡ Rejection Sensitivity Dysphoria (RSD)

Emotional Impact: RSD involves intense emotional responses to perceived rejection, leading to feelings of worthlessness and despair.​

Verywell Mind

Mental Health Correlation: RSD is linked to depression, social anxiety, and suicidal thoughts. ​

Verywell Mind

🎖️ Veterans, PTSD, and ADHD

Comorbidity Rates:

In one study, 36% of veterans with PTSD also had adult ADHD, compared to 11% without PTSD.

Another study found that 28% of veterans with PTSD met criteria for current ADHD. ​

PubMed

Functional Impairments: Veterans with both PTSD and ADHD reported worse outcomes in mood, sleep quality, and neurobehavioral symptoms compared to those with only one of the conditions. ​

PMC

Risk Amplification: ADHD may increase vulnerability to developing PTSD, and the combination can exacerbate symptoms of both disorders. ​

PubMed

🧠 Bottom Line

The intersection of ADHD, RSD, and PTSD—particularly in veterans—creates a compounded risk for suicide. Misdiagnosis, underdiagnosis, and lack of targeted treatment exacerbate these risks. Early intervention and comprehensive care addressing all co-occurring conditions are crucial for prevention and support.