Kate Garraway says husband Derek felt he 'can't go on' during Covid recovery
Derek has felt he 'can't go on' at times, reveals Kate Garraway
Kate Garraway has said her husband Derek has felt that he "can't go on" at times, as he continues with his battle against coronavirus.
Mr Draper remains in hospital after being admitted with Covid-19 in March last year, before he spent six months in a coma.
Speaking on Good Morning Britain ahead of the release of an ITV documentary Finding Derek, Ms Garraway spoke about the struggle the 53-year-old faced during the past year.
She said: "There is a moment in the documentary that is tough for people to watch, and that's the moment where he feels he can't go on.
"I managed to record that moment, and actually was quite a long period."
She added: "That particular moment was actually a night when I was in here and I was on air the next morning because it started late at night and I didn't want to come off the FaceTime with him. And I wanted to show I was still with him.
"We kept FaceTiming through the night and then on the way into work I asked if they could put Good Morning Britain on in there so he can see where I am."
Ms Garraway added: "The reason I decided to include that point, because it was obviously him at a very low emotional ebb, so you have to think very carefully about that shown. .. But I think that's how anybody would feel if they had been trapped inside a body and mind that is not letting them communicate.
"They're fighting against physical pain, discomfort. and anybody would feel that way. It's important to show that it's going to effect you, in whatever degree you've got it."
Kate praises mental strength of her two children, Bill and Darcey
Ms Garraway, also 52, praised the mental reliance of her two children, Bill and Darcey, and how they have coped during the past year.
"They are fundamentally extraordinary. I think they've coped tremendously well. The simple act of talking to a dad on FaceTime from a dad who's very changed is a huge one.
"They've coped with it in different ways."
Ms Garraway has previously spoke about the fear of giving up her job on Good Morning Britain in order to offer her husband Derek Draper 24-hour care.
Ms Garraway suggested they would have a “completely different dynamic” in their marriage when he is able to leave hospital.
In the ITV documentary Finding Derek, she is seen renovating the ground floor of their family home so it is wheelchair accessible ahead of his possible return.
She tells their son Bill: “You know that we are hoping that dad will get better and better, but when he comes home he will probably need to be in a wheelchair, so we are trying to make it so he can do all this.
“And if I have to give up work to care for him then it is best to do it now when I am earning money.
“If he needs 24-hour care I will be the primary carer. I have a fear of the reality of that life. It is a completely different dynamic to our relationship.”
Garraway says Draper’s gradual recovery, which has seen him regain the ability to talk, “feels like a positive”.
She adds: “The only thing that panics me is that we are on such a rollercoaster with Derek that I am looking around during all this chaos and then the next minute there will be a phone call to say something has gone backwards.
“You think, ‘Gosh am I just fooling myself, I suppose?’”
The documentary details their family’s experience during his illness and sees Garraway speaking to people suffering long Covid, NHS staff and other experts.
One scene sees her recall being told by Draper’s doctors that he was the most seriously ill person they had seen who remained alive.
“Derek is the sickest person the team of doctors in the lung hospital have treated that has lived,” she said.
“His kidneys have failed, his liver has failed, his heart is being supported with medicine.
“So the best way of coping with that is to think, ‘What have I got control over?’ and I guess that is making sure the children feel okay.”
Elsewhere in the programme, Sir Elton John supports Garraway over the phone, telling her: “I pray for him every night, in my prayers, and you and your family.
“He is an amazing man, please give him my love when you talk to him next time.”
Garraway has been playing Draper music by Sir Elton in a bid to trigger emotional reactions.
Watch 'Kate Garraway: Finding Derek' on Tuesday at 9pm on ITV and the ITV Hub.
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