Why didnt I know...

that I have a big gaping hole in my midsection????

I went to my midwife for my 6 week check up and this is what she told me. She laid me down and told me to lift my head while she felt on my stomach. She told me that my abdominal muscles were separated. This is how its supposed to be.

But this is how mine looks.  She let me feel and and yes, there is a 3 or 4 inch gap between my abdominal mucles. She informed me that not doing anything to fix it can render lots of problems down the road like lower back pain. Ahhh...no thanks. I gots to fix it. It can happen after a pregnancy but thats not the only cause.

Abdominal separation/diastasis recti reduces the integrity and functional strength of the abdominal wall and can aggravate lower back pain and pelvic instability. Separation in a previous pregnancy significantly increases the probability, and severity, of the condition in subsequent pregnancies. Women expecting more than one baby, petite women, those with a pronounced sway back, or with poor abdominal muscle tone are at increased risk. Genetics can also plays a big role. For some women, it simply how their bodies respond to pregnancy.

This simple self-test will help you determine if you have abdominal separation/diastasis recti

1.	Lie on your back with your knees bent, and the soles of your feet on the floor.
2.	Place one hand behind your head, and the other hand on your abdomen, with your fingertips across your midline—parallel with your waistline— at the level of your belly button.
3.	With your abdominal wall relaxed, gently press your fingertips into your abdomen.
4.	Roll your upper body off the floor into a “crunch,” making sure that your ribcage moves closer to your pelvis.
5.	Move your fingertips across your midline, feeling for the right and left sides of your rectus abdominus muscle.

Now you have got to be asking yourself how you can fix it. This link has a lot of good tips. My midwife gave me a handout of the Tuplar Technique but its too much to type out here. Its a 4 step program but its similar to the link above. The lady who came up with this technique, Julie Tuplar, did an interview here that was quite informative. If you discover your stomach is just as jacked up as mine, fix it! LOL!!!