SEARCHING FOR PEACE AFTER THE DARKNESS OF ADDICTION Every family has its hidden struggles. The Hoemke family is no different. Devoted mother and author Susán Hoemke bravely shares their devastating journey through crippling addiction and loss in Healing Scarred Hearts: A Family’s Story of Addiction, Loss, and Finding Light.

Hayden Hoemke, the oldest of four beautiful children, began experimenting with and abusing substances at a young age, which led to his opioid addiction. For eight years, not only did he hurt himself but his family agonized as they tried desperately to seek help for him. At the young age of twenty-two Hayden died tragically due to an overdose, and the family was forever changed.

Through Healing Scarred Hearts, Susán unflinchingly relates how the mental and physical impact of the drugs on Hayden’s body turned her happy, creative son into a stranger in their home. Her first-hand perspective on the unthinkable pain of losing a child and the fight to rebuild her family serves as a wake-up call about the sweeping opioid epidemic. Emotional, raw, and gripping, this memoir provides a resource of hope and help to other families.

"This is a story of courage, unwavering parental love, and extraordinary spousal support. It is told without shame, so anyone who may be hiding addiction—either one’s own or that of a loved one—may feel safe, unburdened by judgment, and can reach out for help." — Angela Mia De la Vega, NSS, ARCLM | Founder and president of FLITE to Freedom