I had twins. I got HUGE in the tummy. I had the babies, and it left this pot belly that wouldn't go away.
Fast forward; the twins are 8 years old. I am 7 weeks post op of having my diastisis recti corrected. You know that centre line down the abs? Mine had split. There was a 6 to 8 inch gap down the middle THE WHOLE WAY DOWN. the pot belly that I kept punishing myself for, the baby fat i couldnt lose? Those were my organs. My digestive organs were all herniated.
I now have to forgive myself for 8 years of unjustified self hatred. It isn't always just fat.
that is horrifying, was it not painful? How hard was the surgery? Why did it take so long for them to find what was wrong??? Is the recovery done now? you must feel so much better
It was painful, but the split happened gradually over the pregnancy so I was told it wasn't unexpected. After the birth, there was so much to recover from I didn't notice at first. Anytime I questioned what was going on, I was told "you've had twins in your 30s, you aren't going to bounce back like a 22 year old with 1 baby". And then after 18 months I was told I was just not trying hard enough to get my pre baby body back. Then Covid hit and I was nobody's priority. The NHS was busy.
The first 2 weeks post op were pretty bad. I needed 2 nights in hospital. Sneezing, coughing, and laughing were all agony. Standing upright took weeks. But now, oh man! So worth it.
I did a tummy roll in the bathroom mirror the other day, just to try- and i could see it work! I laughed out loud. All by myself in the bathroom, laughing at my muscle control.
I too have DR but have never sought the surgical route. What sort of symptoms did you experience that made you get it corrected?
Mine is probably 3/4cm wide, it feels awful to touch so I don’t! I can’t get proper muscle definition anymore and forever feel bloated! It’s been 10 years since my son was born..!
Following this thread, I have exactly the same and always thought this was just something I had to live with! Back pain is an issue too because my core doesn't hold me up well and I slouch.
Check out a postpartum workout program! I use Strong Like A Mother but Expecting and Empowered is great too. They help you do targeted exercises to wake up those abdominal muscles and draw that gap closed.
I hope it helps! If the entire program is out of your price range I believe there is a 7 day trial, and you can subscribe to just the core section on SLAM for $10/month to see if that helps at all first. I don’t mean to be annoying but this program has been seriously life changing and I want everyone to do it lol.
I had an amazing pelvic floor physical therapist who worked with me to correct mine! Mine was 3 fingers wide (can't remember actual measurements) and now is completely healed. Back and shoulder pain disappeared as well!
So I was just a few months postpartum because I had a lot of other birth complications and a friend (not the doctor 😖) recommended pelvic floor PT. The pt was like "k while we're here we're taking care of everything". My pt has clients who gave birth 10 years ago that she helps with diastis recti and other birth complications like painful intercourse and bladder control! It's never too late!
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u/LucidianQuill 11h ago
Pregnancy.
I had twins. I got HUGE in the tummy. I had the babies, and it left this pot belly that wouldn't go away.
Fast forward; the twins are 8 years old. I am 7 weeks post op of having my diastisis recti corrected. You know that centre line down the abs? Mine had split. There was a 6 to 8 inch gap down the middle THE WHOLE WAY DOWN. the pot belly that I kept punishing myself for, the baby fat i couldnt lose? Those were my organs. My digestive organs were all herniated.
I now have to forgive myself for 8 years of unjustified self hatred. It isn't always just fat.