Diastasis What?
What on earth is a diastasis recti? Diastasis means separation or division, and recti refers to the rectus abdominis muscle. So a diastasis recti (DR) is a separation of the rectus abdominis, or “6-pack” muscle in our abdomen. And while we can’t blame all DRs on babies, they are the number one cause of this issue!
The most common symptom of a DR is a dome or ridge down the middle of the belly when contracting the abdominal muscles such as when doing a curl/sit up. People with a DR may also experience low back pain, incontinence, and a general feeling of lacking the “core strength”. Daily tasks like lifting and carrying a baby can be difficult and put a strain on other muscles in the back and shoulders.
Pregnant people (or those who are postpartum) often come to me with lots of questions, concerns, and even fears about having a diastasis. There’s a lot of pretty scary information out there about having a DR. Lots of “you should never do this exercise again”, or “don’t move like this if you have a DR”. Sometimes the gloom and doom surrounding the topic of DR is overwhelming - as if people who are pregnant or just delivered a baby don’t have enough to worry about with, ya know, caring for a newborn human being. And the sad thing is, there’s just no reason for this horribly pessimistic outlook.
Can a diastasis recti affect your overall core strength? Yep. Can it alter the way your tummy looks even after that bebe has vacated the premises? Yep. What about affecting your pelvic floor function? Yep - because your pelvic floor IS part of your core. Growing an entire human being in your body can change thing, BUT, that doesn’t mean that you are doomed to a life of being afraid to move or exercise in certain ways because of a DR.
As a pelvic floor physical therapist, I help people rehab DR all the time. And I don’t do it by scaring the crap out of them about this very common change during and after pregnancy! We look at rehabbing the muscles that need it, teaching them to work in ways that were difficult with the changes in body shape during the late stages of pregnancy. We talk about moving and breathing in ways that support the body’s natural desire to heal after delivering a baby. And above all else, I work hard to empower my patients to see that having a DR does not have to limit them. The fear and angst so many of them feel after diving way too deep into the DR internet rabbit hole can easily be dispersed if we just look at what they CAN do, and work together towards their goals.
