1 Year After Jarring Overdose Photo, Woman Celebrates Sobriety

HOPE, IN — A photo shared by the Hope, Indiana, police last year showing an unconscious woman who had overdosed on heroin, syringe still dangling from her hand while her untended child sat helplessly in the back seat, is now, a year later, being celebrated for the good that came from it.

The photo, like many others shared by police departments across the country, captured the pervasiveness of the opioid epidemic gripping the United States. But the woman pictured in the photo shared her story exactly a year later and credits the image for ultimately leading her to her recovery. In a Facebook post shared Oct. 22, the woman, Erika Hurt, shared the news that she has been sober for one year.

"I've decided to repost the picture simply because it displays exactly what heroin addiction is," Hurt wrote in her post. "Also because I do not want to ever forget where the road of addiction has taken me. Little did I know that day, my life was about to change, drastically. Today, I am able to focus on the good that came from that picture. Today, I am a mother to my son, again. Today, I am able to be grateful to actually have solid proof where addiction will only lead you, and today I am able to say that I am ONE YEAR SOBER!"

Hurt also spoke at length with NBC News about her experience since the day the photo was taken. At first, she said that the police department exposing her addiction to the whole world was terrible, but she has since changed her mind.

Hope Town Marshal Matt Tallent, who released the photo, told NBC News he never meant to embarrass or shame Hurt into changing. He called Hurt's story, "a story of success."

The photo of Erika shared by the Hope Police Department was similar to photos shared by police in Ohio and Massachusetts, trying to bring attention to the epidemic. Nationwide, opioid-related deaths have skyrocketed and in Bartholomew County, where Hope is located, there were nine opioid-related deaths in 2015. On Thursday, President Donald Trump declared the opioid crisis a national public health emergency but did not provide any additional funding to combat the crisis.

Hurt, 26, told NBC News she traces her heroin addiction to a staph infection she contracted at 15, for which she was prescribed painkillers. After her overdose last year, she served a two-year suspended jail sentence and was required to attend an inpatient drug rehab problem. She was reunited with her son, who turns two in December, and allowed to live at her mother's house under house arrest after completing the inpatient program.

"I have thousands of shout outs, too many to list, Hurt wrote on Facebook. "Just know that I DO NOT tackle recovery alone, I have a very large group of supporters standing behind me each and every day to help make sobriety possible for me!"

You can read more of Hurt's interview with NBC News here.

Photo: In this Saturday, Oct. 22, 2016 photo provided by the Town of Hope Police Department, Erika Hurt sits with her baby in the back seat of the car in Hope, Ind. Police said she appeared unresponsive from an overdose and had a syringe in her hand. (Town of Hope Police Department via AP)