Medal of Honor Hero Staff Sgt. Ty Carter talks about having PTSD

Staff Sgt. Ty Cater knows what it is like to wake up with PTSD because of combat. He also knows what it is like to be on the road to healing it. He wants to help others because he understands the pain they are in.

Medal of Honor recipient, formerly of Fort Carson, wants to help eliminate PTSD stigma
The Gazzette
By Erin Prater
July 29, 2013

Carter said he struggles with PTSD, though counseling has helped. He spoke about a comrade who died because of PTSD and called the condition "a combat wound."

"It's something that needs time to heal," he said. "The best way to do it is to use the facilities that the Army provides. The stigma is slowly going away, but I'm just worried about the new soldier who's trying to prove themselves by not seeking help."

A former Fort Carson soldier who will be awarded the Medal of Honor next month is hoping to de-stigmatize post-traumatic stress disorder by speaking about his own struggles with it.

Staff Sgt. Ty Carter will receive the medal for heroic actions at Combat Outpost Keating in Afghanistan during an Oct. 3, 2009, battle with hundreds of insurgents who tried to overtake the outpost, the White House said Friday in a press release.

At the time of the battle, Carter was assigned to the 3rd Squadron of the 61st Cavalry Regiment, part of Fort Carson's 4th Brigade Combat Team.

Speaking in a live webcast Monday from Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where he is stationed, Carter, 33, told reporters he was transitioning to a cadre position at the base's Warrior Transition Battalion for soldiers with serious injuries and long-term illnesses when he learned he would receive the medal.

During the Oct. 3, 2009, battle, Carter risked his life repeatedly, running through gunfire to grab ammunition and supplies for comrades and then to rescue Spc. Stephan Mace, who was wounded and pinned down. Others had tried to reach Mace and died in the attempt.

Mace died after he was pulled to an aid station by Carter and others.
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Ty M. Carter to receive Medal of Honor for actions in Afghanistan