Peter Andre’s wife Emily says Derek Draper talking again is ‘massive step’ amid recovery
The junior NHS medic, 31, says it’s a “massive step” for Derek to be speaking again after waking up from a coma
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Peter Andre‘s wife Dr Emily MacDonagh has opened up about Kate Garraway‘s husband Derek Draper‘s coronavirus recovery process.
The junior NHS medic, 31, says it’s a “massive step” for Derek to be speaking again after waking up from a coma.
Kate was left devastated when her husband contracted the coronavirus in March, as things took a turn for the worse soon after.
Derek – with whom Kate shares two kids – was left fighting for his life on a ventilator in intensive care.
And now Emily has given her expert opinion on Derek’s “breakthrough” moment, saying how the ability to speak is “very complex” and uses multiple parts of the brain.
In her OK! mag column, Emily penned: “It sounds strange to say but the ability to speak is very complex, using different parts of the brain to process it.
“It sounds like such a small step but it’s massive and he can now start to tell them how he’s feeling.
“It sounds like he’s still got some way to go in his recovery and I really hope he continues to make progress.”
While Derek remains in hospital, Kate recently shared “miracle moment” her husband spoke for the first time in 214 days.
The GMB star shared her joy with her co-stars Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid earlier this month.
She said: “Back in April when we chatted for the first time and I said, look, he seems to have survived so far… this could be it [miracle].”
Kate opened up about the miracle moment she witnessed Derek first speak while she felt equally devastated her husband revealed he was in pain.
She said: “[The hospital staff] keep talking to him and they would say ‘Ok, we’re just going to move your arm or leg’ and every time they said ‘Let us know if you feel pain.’
“He mouthed ‘pain’… everyone stopped and stared.”
She added: “It is heartbreaking because he does feel pain but what it does mean is that he has been able to feel a sensation in his body and connect it with his brain and then mouth pain,” she said.
“I believe he is in there,” Kate said. “That’s a long way from who Derek is….but it’s a start.”
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