This is a question that I get a lot! How can this medical condition be so prominent in women, men and children and most people have never heard of it? How can 98% of women who have had babies have some form of diastasis but it is never diagnosed?
I am a Physical Therapist and I was a high level athlete most of my youth into my twenties and I have great body awareness and I had no idea that this was what was causing my post baby belly and contributing to my back pain, stress incontinence and pelvic instability. People who know much less about the body are even less likely to figure it out. Why?
Well, I believe the number one reason that we don't know much about this condition is that until recently there has not been a great solution for the problem. Sadly, if medical professionals do not have cure, whether it is medication, surgery or some other treatment they tend to not look for the condition. Yes, diastasis recti can be treated by traditional Physical Therapy and there are plastic surgeons who will sew the tummy back together or put mesh in the separation and do a tummy tuck, but neither of these solutions have been ideal.
Diastasis recti is a condition that has not been effectively healed with traditional Physical Therapy. I do not say this to be challenging, I say it because it is true. While there may be a few PT's out there that have effectively helped their clients heal- it is rare. We learn little about this condition in school and little about rehabilitation to the abdominal wall. PT's are awesome at treating low back pain, SI and Pelvis Instability and Pelvic Floor dysfunction but most PT's do not even check their clients with these symptoms for a diastasis. When they do find a diastasis, they tend to do core stabilization treatments which are often done in back-lying or all 4's positions- both of which make it very difficult for the transverse to activate effectively to help close a the separated abdominal wall. The healing and rehabilitation process is slow and monotonous and that is difficult to do in a traditional PT session setting.
Plastic surgery is not the answer either. First of all, it is not covered by your insurance most of the time, even when you are having serious pain and medical complications. Second of all, if you simply stitch muscle tissue together or insert mesh to hold the wall together and do nothing to change what caused the problem in the first place then it will slowly separate again. I have had 5 women in the past year in my workshops who had mesh inserted or plastic surgery to repair their tummy and then came to me months or years later. All of them had a separated their abdominal wall again. Surgery is good for extra skin but it is not the answer to fix the core muscle problem.
So... if the doctor does not know how to help you then they are less likely to go looking for this condition.
This is not the only reason Diastasis Recti is not diagnosed. It is also not understood how much a separated abdominal wall can contribute to the very common complaints of back pain and pelvis instability. It is not the only thing going on but it is a big piece of the puzzle that has been overlooked.
The good news is there is a NON SURGICAL, NON INVASIVE, INEXPENSIVE AND EFFECTIVE solution! The Tupler Technique is based on research and has helped thousands of women and men heal their diastasis.
Do not be discouraged if your doctor, midwife or chiropractor does not diagnose your diastasis or does not know there is a cure. We are working hard to change that . But take charge of your own health. If you think this might be something you are struggling with get more information at www.thetummyteam.com. You do not have to continue to struggle, there is a solution.
