Kate Garraway says husband Derek Draper has spoken for first time since Covid-19 hospital admission

'It's so heart-wrenching, but it is a huge breakthrough,' says GMB presenter

Kate Garraway has revealed that her husband Derek Draper has spoken his first word since the start of his seven-month battle with coronavirus in March.

The Good Morning Britain (GMB) presenter shared that Draper whispered the word “pain” as nurses attempted to reposition his body.

“It's a case of trying to balance belief, hope, optimism with reality,” she told The Sun. “But we have had a breakthrough which was both amazing yet heartbreaking.

“It happened when the nurses were moving Derek, as part of his treatment, to trigger the sensation of gravity because he's been horizontal for so long.”

Garraway added that Draper currently remains in a form of coma called a PDOC (Prolonged Disorder of Consciousness), which has left him generally unresponsive, but he surprised the nurses when he was able to speak for the first time in 214 days.

“Obviously it's so heart-wrenching that his first word was 'pain', but it is a huge breakthrough because it means he has been able to connect the feeling in his body to his brain and mouth,” she explained.

“They called me straight after and I burst into tears. The staff told me later that they were so emotional as well.

“It breaks my heart that there may have been times that he's been in terrible pain and wasn't able to communicate it.”

Garraway went on to share that Draper has now said the word twice, and she was able to witness the second time for herself as she watched over FaceTime.

“The emotionally challenging thing is that we're waiting now to see what happens next; somehow it's even more agonising now there's been this breakthrough,” she said.

“We have greater hope now, but also greater fear of him slipping back. There's no precedent to this virus. Even now no-one fully understands it and its long-term effects.

“There is no idea of timescale or any data as to how much he can recover or how long it will take.”

Sharing more positive news, Garraway explained that Draper no longer needs his tracheostomy tube, which means that his lungs have started to work. However, she added that his recovery is still likely to take some time.

“Derek still needs help with his breathing, especially at night, and is very, very weak,” she added.

“He is being given medicine and drugs to keep things functioning. The virus has left him type 1 diabetic – he had no diabetes before.”

Draper was first admitted to hospital in late March after contracting Covid-19.

As the 53-year-old’s condition quickly worsened, he was taken to intensive care and placed in a medically-induced coma.

In July, it was reported that Draper was in a minimal state of consciousness, having come out of a “deeper coma”.

In June, Garraway opened up about the severity of damage Covid-19 has had on Derek’s body, saying that while he is now coronavirus-free, the disease has left him with a whole in his heart, in need of kidney dialysis and diabetic after complications with his pancreas.

“We may lose him even if we don’t lose him,” she told The Sun.

“If he doesn’t wake up, then he’s sort of lost anyway ... not that I’d love him any less or ever give up.”