“We finally slept”: Meena Shah on the relief St Luke’s brought to her family

Meena Shah would wake in the night to the sound of her husband struggling to swallow. The constant worry and exhaustion had worn her out.

For years, the Kenton couple had been living with Hitesh’s neurological condition. As it worsened, the strain became relentless.

Then St Luke’s Hospice stepped in. For the first time in a long time, they slept through the night.

“That first night… I tell you, we haven’t felt the relieved that we had,” Meena says. “We slept the whole night without worry.”

St Luke’s Hospice (Harrow and Brent) is there for families at home across Harrow and Brent, providing medical and practical care day and night when it’s needed most.

“Hitesh was literally choking on his own saliva,” she says. “He was admitted to hospital three times, one after the other.”

Hitesh has PSP, a rare, progressive neurological condition that affects movement and control.

“We hadn’t slept properly for 16 to 18 months,” Meena says. “We’d hear him gurgling and we’d have to help him to swallow or bring it up.”

Everything revolved around keeping him safe. The pressure built and built.

“I was very, very tired,” Meena says. “I was feeling really low.”

Now, the Hospice at Home team is there every day, with carers visiting four times a day and someone staying overnight.

“They’ve got his medication right, so he’s much calmer,” Meena says. “He’s more comfortable now, and we feel supported.”

The pressure has lifted.

She knows she is not facing it alone.

“My children could see I really needed help,” she says.

Looking back, Meena says the support has taken a huge weight off her shoulders, both mentally and physically, and for the first time in a long while she feels reassured that her husband is being properly cared for and kept comfortable.

Her children, a son and a daughter, now want to give something back.

“They were so happy and so impressed with the service we got,” she says. “They asked how they could help with fundraising.”

Support like this is only possible because of people in the community.

Visit our website to find out how you can help us continue providing this vital care in our community, so more families like Hitesh and Meena’s can feel that same relief — and finally sleep through the night.