Still three years to live at 18: This man (56) simply runs away from his illness

Stephan Kruip from Zorneding should have been dead by now.

But dead people don't run a marathon.

Stephan Kruip does.

About a cystic fibrosis patient who doesn't let himself get down.

Zorneding

- When Stephan Kruip was born, the doctors only gave him a few years.

Diagnosis: cystic fibrosis.

But Kruip is literally running away from his illness: At the age of 56, he is running the Munich Marathon this Sunday.

It is his fourth run over the 42-kilometer distance.

In a 24-hour run in August, he ran 70 kilometers.

Cystic fibrosis (CF), also known as cystic fibrosis, is a congenital metabolic disease in which an imbalance in the salt-water balance creates tough mucus in the cells and gradually blocks vital organs.

Kruip's diagnosis came when his mother was pregnant with him.

His sister died of the disease when she was six.

His parents taught him to fight

"My parents were always open about it and taught me that it was worth fighting," he says of growing up with a medical time bomb in the body.

“They took me to meetings of the Cystic Fibrosis Association early on.

So it was quite natural that I got involved there too, ”says Kruip, who is now the chairman of the association.

In the conversation nothing indicates his illness, he only has to measure his blood sugar level in between, because he suffers from diabetes.

This also requires special planning for the marathon: “I have to start with a high blood sugar level and measure at every supply station,” he explains.

Nevertheless, he hopes to reach the finish line in under four hours: “For me, running is therapy, fascination and fundraising at the same time.” Doctors advise CF patients to do sports, because sweating opens channels and allows the mucus to drain away.

"For me, running is therapy"

As a teenager, Kruip went skiing and played volleyball, "but I never really exhausted myself." He started running in 2007 when he was unable to work for four weeks due to tendinitis. That's when he started: “At first walk for a minute, then walk and cough, then walk for two minutes, walk, cough. After four weeks I was able to run through twenty minutes. "

His role model was another CF patient with whom he became friends: “That spurred me on.” Thanks to his involvement in the Cystic Fibrosis Association and the German Ethics Council, Kruip is well connected to other people affected. Together with four other CF patients, he took part in a 24-hour run in August. His friend Reiner Heske managed 81 kilometers, and eight years ago he was transplanted with a new lung. “Please write how important organ donation is for CF patients,” Kruip asked. During this run, the five friends collected over 22,000 euros in donations. "The disease can still be fatal for young people," says Kruip. Cystic fibrosis is a rare disease and there is often a lack of funds for research and medical care.The medication is very expensive and necessary aids such as a stair lift are not paid for by the health insurers. "People with rare diseases also have the right to good medical care."

The Federal Cross of Merit has already been awarded for his commitment

The donations therefore also flow into very specific support funds for patients who cannot live with the disease as well as Kruip himself. The Zornedinger was honored with the Federal Cross of Merit in 2019 for his commitment.

His son Jonas (20) accompanies him at the Munich marathon on Sunday.

The fact that Kruip is a father of three - anything but self-evident: “I asked myself even then: will I see my children grow up?

Do I have 18 years until they are of legal age? ”When Kruip was 18 years old himself, the doctors gave him three more years.

Today he is 56, and although illness is the central theme of his life, it does not discourage him.

Stephan Kruip quotes the writer Gorch Fock after the legendary German sailing training ship is named: "You cannot extend your life, but you can deepen it."

Homepage of Stephan Kruip: http://www.familie-kruip.de/