Kate Garraway has opened up about her preparations for her husband Derek Draper to return to their family home.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, the Good Morning Britain co-host revealed that in December, she had their house fitted with ramps and widened doorways for wheelchair access, as well as installing a wet room.
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Before the lockdown was announced, the mum-of-two was hoping to bring Derek home for a few hours in order to help his recovery.
She told the paper: "He’d been in hospital for nearly a year and I do wonder if he’s become institutionalised. I wonder if there’s a little bit of emotional lockdown going on."
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Sadly, though, tightened restrictions meant that Kate wasn't able to follow through on her plan and now hasn't been able to see her husband for months.
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A therapist, author and former Labour spin doctor, Derek became ill with COVID-19 in March 2020 and was rushed to hospital and put on a ventilator.
© Photo: RexKate and Derek have been married since 2005
He is still in intensive care almost a year later. Speaking about her husband's slow recovery, the 53-year-old said: "I feel like he is in an ocean of unconsciousness and sometimes he comes up to the surface.
In the run-up to Christmas there were moments of consciousness where I felt like we were really communicating… But then the focus of the concentration disappears, and he’s gone."
Derek and Kate tied the knot back in 2005 and share daughter Darcey, 15, and son, Billy, 11.
The doting mum has written a book about her family's experience which will be out next month.
The Power of Hope by Kate Garraway, £10, Amazon
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Speaking about her plans to release the memoir earlier in the year, the star said: "If writing about my experience of facing fear, coping daily with an uncertain future and finding strength for the sake of my kids can help another person feeling lost or in despair, it'll mean a lot."
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