After pregnancy, two out of three women suffer from abdominal or rectum diastasis, an injury with annoying health consequences and that also affects the aesthetic plane. However, diastasis is still a great unknown to many people, and women who suffer from it feel misunderstood and may even experience self-esteem.
Today we are going to know more about this abdominal injury from Rafael Vicetto, a specialized physiotherapist with more than ten years of experience in the field of rectum diastasis, and creator of the Stop Diastasis method. We tell you what is and why abdominal diastasis occurs.
Why abdominal diastasis occurs
Diastasis of the rectus abdominis is an injury that consists of separation of the two straight abdominals along the alba line. Certain conditions such as obesity or genetic factors may predispose to suffer this injury, although pregnancy is the main cause of diastasis.
In Babies and more Ask the midwife: What is it and how to solve the diastasis of the rectus abdominis?During pregnancy, the woman's body is changing and adapting to the baby It is growing in the womb. To leave room, the abdominal muscles expand and the organs move.
As a result of this physiological change, there is a break in the alba line that will increase as gestation progresses. Thus, it is estimated that between 70 and 100% of pregnant women suffer from diastasis in the third trimester, being more prevalent in pregnancies with a lot of weight gain and in multiple gestations.
Abdominal rectus before, during and after pregnancy. Vicetto Physiotherapy Clinic After pregnancy, only in 20% of cases the abdomen returns to its place. But in others, the lesion does not resolve spontaneously, an abdominal volume similar to a gut of a few months of gestation persists.What consequences does abdominal diastasis have
Among the functions that the trunk muscles have is body and visceral containment. If these muscles are not correctly toned or suffer some type of injury, a series of consequences will be triggered in our body:
In Babies and more Postpartum recovery: everything you need to consider to take care of yourself at this stage- Loss of urine, as a consequence of the weakening of the pelvic floor.
- Rectal dysfunctions, because the weakness of the musculature makes evacuation difficult when the anus rectal angle is modified, also causing problems with constipation and hemorrhoids.
- Pain during sex
- Bad digestions
- Abominal and lumbar pain
- Aesthetic problems, because the gut that remains as a result of the diastasis is bulky, similar to a gestation of four months of pregnancy.
Rafael Vicetto laments the misinformation that exists regarding abdominal diastasis, and believes that pregnancy and postpartum protocols should talk about it, because only then could the woman be properly informed to put herself in the hands of the specialist as soon as possible:
"Many women take for granted that it is normal to feel some pain in their relationships, or to have urine leaks or even stay with tripita. It is something they have been assuming from generation to generation, but it is not so. All this can be treated and solved."
How is it diagnosed
The diagnosis of abdominal diastasis is usually made in most cases after a manual assessment by the physiotherapist, although it may also be necessary to complete it with a functional ultrasound of the abodminal wall or even a CT scan.
In any case, and by way of guidance, from Clínica Fisioterapia Vicetto we share this video that can help you check if you have abdominal diastasis, although this assessment is purely indicative and should not replace the expert under any circumstances:
Rafael encourages all women who have had a baby or have any of the symptoms described above to go to the physiotherapist for an assessment, and put in the hands of the relevant professionals in case of injury:
"My recommendation is that all women after childbirth have a gynecological examination and another with the physiotherapist, who will assess their muscles and structural damage that have occurred at the musculoskeletal level during pregnancy."
What to do and what not to do in case of diastasis
If you have abdominal diastasis the physiotherapist will indicate the best treatment to follow to achieve a functional abdomen and alleviate the symptoms caused by lack of tone.
Also, you should know that there are a number of postures and movements that could make the injury worse, and that you should avoid as much as possible:
- Great efforts maintained or continuous
- Daily movements in which the trunk is flexed, for example, bend over to catch something with your legs straight.
- Some sports that involve a trunk rotation and abdominal hyperpression such as golf, tennis or certain yoga and pilates postures.
- The classic abs, which in addition to aggravating the diastasis can be especially harmful to our pelvic floor, as the perineal muscles are subject to great tension and can eventually weaken.
- Chronic cough, allergy crisis or constipation, as efforts could make the injury worse.
In Babies and more Hypopressive exercises after childbirth: much more than an aid to recover our silhouette Soon we will explain the various methods to treat abdominal or rectum diastasis, and why it is so important to get into the hands of professionals as soon as possible.Photos | iStock
Acknowledgments | Rafael Vicetto, from the Vicetto Physiotherapy Clinic and creator of the Stop Diastasis method
