A Marathon and a Missing Microbiome
“My Results Are Poor, but My Quality of Life Is Good”
The gut microbiome is primarily located in the large intestine and is one of our most important partners when it comes to health and well-being. The tiny microorganisms in the gut help us with digestion, immune function, and mental well-being. But what happens when, due to illness, you suddenly have to have your entire colon removed?
That is something 35-year-old Finnish woman Taru Vainikainen knows very well.
Twenty Trips to the Bathroom
At the age of 20, Taru had her entire colon removed and has since lived with a so-called J-pouch, where the rectum is reconstructed from the small intestine to form a small “J”.
At 18, Taru was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, a chronic inflammatory bowel disease affecting the colon. She experienced extreme fatigue, bloating, and had to go to the bathroom up to 20 times a day.
“It was a huge challenge for me. When the disease was at its worst, I couldn’t even leave my home, because when I needed to go, I had to find a toilet immediately.”
Dependent on Medication, or Lacking a Microbiome
No medication worked. The only drug that helped was corticosteroids, but every time she tried to taper off, her symptoms worsened. Taru realized that surgery was her only remaining option if she did not want to live on steroids for the rest of her life.
“I asked for the surgery myself. I think I was so depressed that I just said: Can’t you do something? I can’t live like this.”
After the surgery, the first year was physically very challenging. Her body was completely out of balance, and she had to relearn how it worked. The psychological challenges took longer: “The whole disease process felt like a fight for survival. It was only after the surgery that I really had time to think about what had happened. I was never diagnosed with depression, but looking back, I probably was.”
The Importance of Hydration
Fifteen years later, Taru no longer feels much of the psychological burden or her missing colon in daily life, but she does have to be careful with hydration, as she becomes dehydrated very quickly.
Her digestion also works faster than most people’s. She can eat most foods, but coarse fibers and very green vegetables are absorbed less well, especially when she is stressed. And stress is a crucial factor for her quality of life: “The most important thing I’ve learned is stress management. When I live in balance, everything works much better.”
A Microbiome Test Without a Microbiome to Test
Taru had heard about microbiome testing years before meeting Unseen Bio and was curious to try it, but she couldn’t get a test shipped from the U.S. Meeting Unseen Bio’s microbiome test was an eye-opener: “The results were really bad. I didn’t think it could be that bad.”
She was reassured after a conversation with Unseen Bio’s Johan Hartmann: “He told me not to compare myself to healthy Europeans, but to look at my quality of life. My results are bad, but my quality of life is good.”
And Taru’s quality of life really is good, despite her missing colon. She has defied doctors’ warnings and completed both a marathon and a half Ironman, even though doctors believed it would be impossible for her. “I wanted to challenge myself, but it’s not something you just do. You have to train for it, and when I trained, I realized I could push myself further.”
Perhaps it is precisely this willpower and determination that allow Taru Vainikainen to maintain healthy habits and live well without symptoms: “The basics: sleep, nutrition, exercise, and following your body’s natural rhythm, have a huge impact on how you feel.”
The importance of these habits became even clearer to her after gaining insight into her gut through testing, how vital it is to follow and maintain them when, like her, you live permanently without a microbiome.
