Kate Garraway has provided a tragic update on her husband Derek Draper’s persistent health concerns, revealing that he is still suffering from ‘damage’ caused by Covid.
Derek, a former political lobbyist, tested positive with Covid in March 2020 and was put into an induced coma to assist battle the infection. He was ultimately pronounced Covid-free and awoke from his coma, but he has been fighting one of the most severe instances of extended Covid in the country, his body devastated by the infectious disease’s consequences.
Derek was freed from the hospital and returned to the home he lives with Kate, 55, and their two daughters, Darcey, 17, and Billie, 13, in 2021, but he has required 24-hour care. He was hospitalised many times last year owing to various health difficulties.
‘It’s tough, he’s still very, very injured,’ the Good Morning Britain host added of Derek’s continued recuperation. He can’t really move, can’t really communicate, and is still fed through tubes, so he has a long road ahead of him.’
Kate remarked on Giovanna Fletcher‘s Walt Disney Travel Company podcast Journey To The Magic that the family is ‘Fine, they’re good’.
‘But if you compare that to last Christmas or the Christmas before, when he was still in the hospital, you can see improvement,’ she added of Derek.
‘It’s just, you just want it to be quicker and faster, of course, like everybody would. But it’s a challenging one – he spent most of last year in the hospital as well for various different things, so it was lovely to have him home.’
Kate has published two films on her experiences caring for Derek since his health fight began, both of which received National Television Awards: ITV1’s Discovering Derek and the follow-up Caring For Derek.
‘I started filming Derek in hospital to see if there was progress,’ she explained to Giovanna.
‘And it was so emotional seeing him with all the tubes and everything that goes with it and in such a sick state. But I couldn’t really take it in and then afterwards the doctors would say, “did you see any difference from last time?” And I was thinking “gosh, I don’t really know that I took it in” – I was just overwhelmed with the emotion.’
Kate’s episode on Journey To The Magic will be available form Wednesday March 15 on all streaming platforms, and will also be available to watch on the Disney UK YouTube channel.
Long Covid – what you need to know
Most infections with Covid resolve within the first four weeks. Long Covid is a term commonly used to describe symptoms that continue or develop after you’ve had the initial virus.
An estimated 1.5 million people in the UK (2.4% of the population) have reported experiencing Long Covid symptoms.
The recovery time is different for everyone. The length of your recovery is not necessarily related to the severity of your initial illness, or whether you were in hospital.
According to the latest reports, Long Covid is most common in people aged 35-69 years, women, people living in more deprived areas, those working in health care, social care, or teaching and education, and those with another activity-limiting health condition or disability.
Common Long Covid symptoms include:
- Extreme tiredness (fatigue)
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain or tightness
- Problems with memory and concentration (“brain fog”)
- Difficulty sleeping (insomnia)
- Heart palpitations
- Dizziness
- Pins and needles
- Joint pain
- Depression and anxiety
If new or ongoing symptoms do occur and they are causing you concern, you should always seek medical advice and support.
For more information and support you can apply to join the Long Covid Support Group on Facebook, which currently has more than 50,000 members.