How To Heal Diastasis Recti Naturally
Authored by Dr. Karah Charette, PT, DPT, RYT
Are you tired of being told to stop doing core exercises to heal your diastasis recti?
Are you fearful your diastasis will never heal or you might need surgery to fix it?
You have come to the right place! Diastasis recti can heal naturally and good pelvic floor physical therapy can help you get the results you want and deserve.
In this blog, you will learn three natural ways to help heal your diastasis recti now, in the comfort of your own home.
What is diastasis?
Diastasis Recti is a condition where the fascia in between the rectus abdominus (the six pack muscles) gets overstretched and so the muscle wall of the rectus begins to separate from each other. Diastasis is a common issue that often happens to people who are postpartum. It can also happen to anyone who has rapidly gained weight in their stomach, has a history of abdominal surgery, or in general has a long history of poor pressure management in their abdomen.
Can Diastasis cause other issues?
Yes. A diastasis alone may not be very noticeable or painful, but it can be the driver of many other seemingly unrelated symptoms. Because a diastasis affects the efficiency of your abdominal wall, it affects your core and pressure management. A healthy core is essential for other areas of your body such as your back and your pelvic floor. Very commonly, people with diastasis recti also can suffer from low back pain, urinary incontinence, prolapse, and even GERD. Diastasis can also affect why you might look and feel bloated. All of these conditions have a high likelihood of core coordination problems being the root cause. Diastasis recti can be related to the core coordination issue.
How do I know if I have a diastasis?
You can do a quick self test at home by first just visually looking at the middle of your stomach. Do you see a sulcus or a valley in the middle, near your belly button? Does the tissue feel stretchier, thinner, softer than the rest of the rest of the abdomen? If the answer is yes, you may have a diastasis rectus.
You might also try to engage your abdomen by doing a small crunch. As you lift your head, do you notice any visible bulging in the middle of your abdomen? If the answer is yes, you again may have a diastasis rectus.
A comprehensive and individualized assessment with a physical therapist can confirm not only if you have a diastasis rectus, but also how big it is and if it has functional closing. Functional closing means if the abdomen is trying to engage appropriately to close down the gap.
You can book here to learn more about that assessment and if you would be appropriate for one.
How can I begin to heal diastasis at home on my own?
You can begin to heal your diastasis naturally at home with a few specific tips. Believe it or not, diastasis is not always about your core being weak. It is also not always about avoiding certain exercises like crunches. Here are three unique tips on how to heal your diastasis beyond just core exercises:
Postural Correction
Your core is more than just your six pack abs. Your true core is a relative container in your abdomen where the top is the respiratory diaphragm, the bottom is the pelvic floor, and the sides are made up of the deep core muscle called the transverse abdominus. This system is a closed pressure management system, like a physioball. Its primary job is to manage pressure and absorb shock. And like a physio ball or balloon, if you squeeze or kink this container at one end, it will create more pressure and bulge at another end.
What does this have to do with posture and diastasis? Think of your diastasis like that bulge in the balloon. When there is laxity (diastasis) in one part of the system, there is usually too much pressure and tightness somewhere else. This is usually driven by posture.
Oftentimes, the people who are more prone to diastasis are the ones who stand with their shoulders rounded, ribcage tucked, and low belly pushing out. This posture kinks the front of the diaphragm, creates more pressure down, and keeps a slackening on the fascia (tissue) around the diastasis, making it hard to close. You could do all the core strengthening in the world, but if you continue to stand with this posture the diastasis will have a difficult time resolving.
The same is true for the opposite extreme in posture. If you are someone who tends to lean into your backspace at the bra strap area of your spine and your ribcage is often flared, you are now kinking your diaphragm from the back and creating consistent stretch on the fascia at the diastasis, also making it hard close appropriately.
If you are unsure where you might fall out of these two categories, ask yourself where your ribcage is in relation to your pelvis? Everyone will have variations, but ultimately the goal is to have your ribcage stacked over your pelvis. This creates an efficient container that can manage pressure without bulging or denting.
Exercise 1: Imagine you have a hot air balloon underneath your rib cage and every time you inhale that balloon begins to float a little bit higher towards the sky. See if you can play with the somatic sense that your ribcage is light, buoyant, and floating above your pelvis. Play with this posture throughout the day as another option for your body and your fascia.
2. Pressure Management
You now understand that the core is a closed container, and therefore a pressure management system. Understanding that concept, you may now appreciate how breathing and pressure can greatly affect diastasis. If you are someone who constantly holds their breath to push, pull, lift, or even have bowel movements, you would benefit from learning how to breathe during those actions.
Exercise 2: When performing tasks of heavy lifting, pushing, or straining, see if you can blow out through pursed lips, like you are letting air out of a balloon. Do this action during the hardest part of the movement, or when you feel the tendency to hold your breath. This will decrease how much pressure goes down into the abdomen, and therefore it will decrease pressure and stretch on the fascia of the diastasis rectus.
3. Fascial Mobilization
Another key component to healing diastasis rectus is fascial reorganization. Think of your fascia like a t-shirt that is quite wrinkled. There are some parts of the shirt that are bundled up and other parts of the shirt that are being overstretched because of that. With diastasis, you need to work on releasing the tight and tense parts of the fascia just as much as you work on strengthening and toning the parts that are overstretched.
One way to do this is with gentle myofascial cupping at the abdomen tissue. This is only recommended if you do not have a major tissue disorder such as severe Ehlers Danlos, a blood clotting disorder, history of or current hernias, or any medical complications at the abdomen including acute scar tissue, cancer, or other major pathologies. If you are unsure, you can consult with one of our doctors of physical therapy here to learn more.
If you perform cupping at home, only the use of gentle silicone cups is recommended. Please do not use any plastic vacuum seal or other more intense forms of cupping without medical supervision by an MD or licensed acupuncturist.
Cupping can be a great tool when safe and indicated to begin to gently reorganize your abdominal fascia. If cupping is not an option, even very gentle work with your hands can still stimulate the fascia and begin to make a difference.
Exercise 3: You could consider purchasing a cup and begin to gently re-organize the fascia. In the meantime, you can also try placing some coconut oil on your belly and doing a very gentle massage around the tissue. If you find areas that seem tight or tender, you might spend more time there. Please be gentle in this area and use no more than 50% of your strength. Go slow as fascia does not respond well to fast, high velocity movements. Try this before some of your core workouts and notice if coordination feels any different.
All of these suggestions are not medical advice as anything prescribed needs to be done so in a thorough evaluation. These are general tips and guidance to see if you can approach healing your diastasis from a different perspective. If something on this list does not feel right or feels confusing to you, speaking to one of our pelvic specialists can help to get your questions answered.
Healing a diastasis rectus can feel frustrating or confusing, but with a comprehensive approach, it is possible to improve not only the diastasis, but more importantly your core and pressure mechanics.
When your body gives you clues that something is going on, it is good to listen to them. Diastasis is not inherently a bad or dangerous thing. However, it is a signal that underlying mechanics could be more optimal.
Get ahead of it now and not only will you heal your diastasis naturally- you will also improve your core and pelvic health!
You can work with any of our doctors of physical therapy here in Oakland, CA at Bodyful and you can also access us virtually via telehealth. Book now to learn more and heal faster.
