Are your abdominals different since giving birth?

Is Diastasis Recti the reason your abdominals look and feel different?

Diastasis Recti is a separation of the rectus abdominus muscle related to the stretching or thinning of the abdominal wall that occurs during pregnancy. These changes at the abdominal wall can be short lived or last longer than expected depending on many factors.

What are potential concerns related to Diastasis Recti?

Diastasis Recti can make it difficult for women to strengthen their abdominals after pregnancy, which in turn can contribute to back pain, pelvic pain or an inability to safely return to activities like running, weight training, heavy lifting and common abdominal exercises. It can also contribute to pelvic floor weakness and urinary incontinence.

While a loss of normal abdominal function sometimes results from Diastasis Recti, a lot of the time women have no “symptoms,” and it is simply bothersome because it gives the appearance of a belly months or even years after childbirth. Either way, whether it is a functional or cosmetic reason, you are not alone if it bothers you or interferes with your happiness. Let me say that another way to stress my point: if you are bothered by your baby bump purely because you don’t love the way you look, that is ok. Thousands of women feel like you do, and there is no shame in wanting to make changes to your body because of it.

Why is what you are doing now not working?

It is common for women to try to lose their tummy on their own with a combination of abdominal exercises, weight loss, a change in diet or daily habits. The truth is sometimes it helps, and sometimes it does not.

Here are some reasons you may not be having the results you want:

The physical changes related to pregnancy are not only at your abdominals and pelvis. The muscles and soft tissue at your ribs, diaphragm, mid back, low back, and hips are all affected by pregnancy and may need to wored on by a pelvic health specialist.
The muscles that are part of your deep core need to be properly engaged and trained before you move on to more challenging exercises. This concept is sometimes hard to master without a trained eye or coach guiding you.
It is not only a question of how hard you are training your abdominals with exercise. Often, scar tissue, muscle tightness, and misalignment at the pelvis and spine contribute to an inability to train your core muscles effectively. For instance, if one side of your pelvis is higher or more forward than the other (which can happen when you carry your baby on one hip), it can make it impossible to fire your abdominal muscles correctly. These abnormalities need to be corrected before you progress your core strengthening program.

When should you seek help?

A thorough evaluation by a women’s health physical therapist is always recommended at six weeks post-partum, especially if you are experiencing weakness in your abdominals or pelvic floor muscles. An initial physical therapy evaluation usually will consist of a pelvic exam and an initial assessment of your pelvis, spine, abdominal wall, and hips. Your physical therapist may also check the joints and muscles above and below to better understand what is contributing to your symptoms. Remember, everything is connected, from how you hold your head at the computer to how you stand.

Act now; don’t put yourself on hold any longer.

Waiting to get help can make it harder to see the results you seek, but seeking a professional’s guidance and assistance is never too late. Whether you are a new mom, this is your first child or your last; I encourage you to take the next step and schedule a consultation with a pelvic health physical therapist specializing in prenatal and postnatal care so you can find out what is going on with your body and get the results you are looking for.