'Each day is a struggle': Pulse nightclub shooting survivor says she has to imagine she was only a witness rather than a victim 

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A Pulse nightclub shooting survivor has said she has to imagine she was a witness rather than a victim to help her move on from the worst mass shooting in American history. 

Patience Carter, 20, from Philadelphia, had been in Orlando for less than 24 hours when she visited Pulse nightclub with her friends Tiara Parker and Akyra Murray.

They were dancing and celebrating Murray's academic accomplishments when Omar Mateen fired shots in the club. 

Patience Carter, 20, was among the 53 people who were wounded during the June 12 shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando. She broke down after recounting the attack in vivid detail

She was one of the 53 people left wounded after the shooting on June 12, which left 50 dead including the gunman. 

In a 911 call shortly after the shooting began, Mateen swore allegiance to ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

Miss Carter and Miss Murray ran out of Pulse once they heard gunfire, but went back into the club to look for Miss Parker.

She hid in a bathroom and when Mateen started shooting, Jason Josaphat, a stranger, shielded her from gunfire.

Miss Carter and Miss Parker had non-lethal injuries, but Mr Josaphat and Miss Murray did not survive.

Carter uploaded this Instagram post yesterday saying 'I'm happy to be back at school, working towards my degree and continuing to build my career' 

Akyra Murray, pictured, was a stand-out player for her high school basketball team and had recently signed a letter of intent to play at Mercyhurst University when she was shot dead

'Each day is a struggle', she told NBC News. 'Each day is an up and down emotional roller coaster, just remembering the faces of people that are no longer here. 

'Dancing with that person, to watching that person bleed, that's a huge impact, changes your life forever.

'Witnessing certain things that you never sort you'd never seen out of a movie, it changes you, it really does.

'I try to look at the situation from a third person point of view as opposed to somebody who went through it and survived it because the thoughts and images are heavy. If you look at it as a reporter or someone telling a story it's easier to cope that way.'

The group of friends had only visited Pulse club as it was one of the first that came up on Google and there was a cheap entrance fee. 

She added: 'The energy was so warm. It was a great place to be. It didn't matter if it was a gay nightclub or not, we were there to have fun.

'We went from having the time of our lives to having the worst night of our lives in a matter of minutes. The guilt of being alive is heavy.'  

Carter, pictured in Florida Hospital after the shooting, said 'each day is a struggle' 

Miss Carter's recovery has been long, but she has made progress.

After being shot in both of her legs, a bullet shattered her femur bone and she was unable to walk.

Last month, her doctor allowed her to get off crutches and she is now walking unaided.

She said: 'I just feel so much stronger now and that helps me emotionally to see that I am getting through this and I'm going to be OK.'  

Following the shooting, Miss Carter was accused by conspiracy theorists of being a 'crisis actor' for Fox 29, where she interned at the time. 

Responding to that she wrote in an Instagram post: 'It's your outrageous insensitivity that makes me want to heal even faster, and grow even stronger.'   

Miss Carter has now enrolled at classes at New York University where she is studying media and cultural communications. 

She also hopes to write a book detailing her experiences from the Pulse nightclub and bring attention to gun violence.