diasti recti repair NHS

[babynelly2010]

Hello,

I got discharged to my gp from physio today saying that my diasti recti is not closing and I opted for surgery.
I asked the lady if the procedure was tummy tuck and she said yes and loose skin can be taken out too! I thought it was very hard to get a tuck with NHS but she seemed very optimistic... ANyone had this done with NHS

I had a 5-6cm Gap x

Zasheard it's amazing you managed to get it on NHS well-done and ESPECIALLY in covid year! Incredible!!! How have you found recovery? Did you have any complications? Can I ask what your gap was? And woukd you recommended. I'm REALLY scared about surgery but I dont feel like I can live like this I am so unhappy and I don't see it getting any better. Also, I genuinly worry about my helaht because of my hernia, my pelvic floor and I have IBD but I think its effected my bowels too because I have ongoing issues that I know is not my IBD x

Sorry Zasheard I've just seen that you said 5-6 cm it was on 2nd page! Xx

Just want to chime in and say thanks so much for updating. This stuff really matters, especially when severe cases can make you feel alone and isolated, and when doctors quite often fob you off as being vain. I’m curious to know if the recovery was as difficult as recovering from a C-section (if anyone did that) that is, simply cut move for a number of weeks and feel poorly at night time when your body heals? My guess is it’s not quite that bad because of course they’re not cutting through as many layers to get a baby out!
(As for treatment pathway, I’ve already logged my struggles with my GP, & my perinatal psychologist on the NHS, and I am seeing a private physiotherapist. If it’s still like this in six months, I’ll go back to the GP and ask for a referral.)

Hi yes I’d definitely recommend it,recovery was hard..was a bit of an emotional rollercoaster at times because I couldn’t do simple things like shower myself etc for a few weeks x

Hi
recovery was a lot harder than my c section,I couldn’t stand up straight for a few weeks,looking after the wound/scar wasn’t easy either,but I’m really happy with the results now xx

Zasheard thanks so much for replying. .yes I can I totally imagine how hard recovery is. I had a terrible recovery from c section much worse than i was expecting but i can imagine how much worse it will be to have stuff all stiched up and tight inside, in addition to akin cut off stretched and restitched. This us why I'm so worried about recovery because I imagine it all.
Can I ask how old your children were during recovery? Is about 2 years old a right guess based on your year pp physio?
I have 2 girls so worry about their care.
The reason I'm so curious is I'm considering going private even though I have no idea how to find a very good private surgeon x

Hi Ivy, I spoke with a consultant’s secretary this morning and she said it starts from £8000 private. What is worse is that the surgeon doesn’t even have a consultation appointment until February 2023–so nine months away. And then his surgical appointment would be six months after that. This is just one guy in London but hey

Thanks Sellotape.....I know it will be expensive but I honestly don't want to live the rest of my life like it so it is what it is. The recovery and it being successful is a bigger concern of mine than the money although the cost is far from ideal!!! Also I im prepared for everything to take a few years to be honest because even recovery will take a long time. But again its a short time in comparison to (hopefully) the rest of my life. Thanks so much for the info though every bit of info is helpful xx

Well please let me know how you get on. I’m still considering it. I’m going to push the NHS but otherwise I’ll have to see what my husband’s work insurance can offer. I totally get it. I don’t like it when people say “oh it’s not that bad,” or suggest that I’m being vain. It’s like being given a totally different body. Your back aches, you can’t do exercise, you can’t lift your babies, and you have to buy a whole new wardrobe! I think it’s totally valid to love your body and love it so much that you want to change it. Best of luck.

Yep bought a whole new wardrobe but still find I can't wear what I want to especially in the summer. You look side on and it's just absolutely ridiculous. I honestly look pregnant and it's embarrassing and horrible. It's not normal. You shouldn't just have to accept that it's ok to go from a flat tummy to a permanent pregnant tummy when the rest of you is back to pre baby size. Being a size up evenly all over would be better! Atleast you'd look in proportion.
On the actual medical side of things though I belive it dangerous for me to stay like it because of my IBD and the hernia.
The surgeon said to his colleague ' oh yes she has a hernia we will need to do something with that' then when he realised my gap was so big he said oh no we won't do anything. I get that the hernia can't be repaired if nothing will support the mesh to hold it in....but as opposed to doing nothing to the hernia, why don't you do the hernia and the muscles. Fix it all don't just leave it because you don't want to fix half of it!!!

Also just to add, I was so so peed off when a copy of the letter from the surgeon to my file came through, it said my main concern was cosmetically how I looked. So not true. Why on earth didn't the letter mention my concern over the impact it would have in line with my IBD, no mention of my back ache, no mention of a my pelvic floor, and no mention of something else I'm too embarrassed to type here....can you belive all of that was left out. I'm furious

Hi
at the time of surgery my youngest was 2 and my daughter was 5, first 2 weeks my partner took time off work to help me then when he went back I had a friend of mine who came around and helped with the kids etc as my partner was home by the afternoon, it took around 12 months for the swelling to settle, it goes up and down for a while before you see you’re actual results, but I did buy some really good compression shorts/underwear to help with swelling and also wore a binder for the first 3 months x

I'm finding this thread so insightful. I had DR after my first, my second is now 9 months old and it's way worse. It's about 3.5 fingers wide but feels very deep this time, like half my hand disappears in there.

I am constantly bloated and struggling with painful gas which I thought was completely unrelated but seeing this thread I understand there could be a link?

When I saw my GP I was sent home with printouts of exercises to do,and have also been doing MUTU but no difference so far I'm so worried it will never change now :(.

I'm also very petite so look ridiculously pregnant. I am a runner and have been doing quite a bit lately and I can tell its made it worse. I also get a sort of prolapse feeling, and terrible back pain in the days after a run.

Am I meant to stop exercising?

Thank you for this thread. I have DR too but I've never thought to see a doctor about it, I didn't think they'd care. Mine isn't too bad, but if I eat or drink anything boom, I look pregnant, even though the rest of me is back to normal size after pregnancy (many years ago) and I've had to buy a whole new wardrobe as it affects tops and waistbands, I dress in an entirely different way now than I used to. Good luck to everyone with DR x

Hmmm this is so interesting. I didn’t know bloating could be related. I’ve also been back & forth with the GP about this. My belly is hard like a drum. It’s not just flabby mummy tummy. It’s like a toddler belly IYKWIM. And I have had loose stools almost every day since c-section. GP seems to shrug shoulders, said they might refer me to gastroenterologist but surely it’s all related to the DR? And why does nobody in NHS care about this..it’s a valid postpartum chronic issue. Weird that you sort of get passed to physio when there might be connected symptoms and effects.

Here’s my before and after pics, the fist pic is the night before my surgery x

Hi Ladies,
Zasheard thank you for sharing. I reckon our tummys are/we're the same. I'll post a pic of mine now. Please bare in mind thats 1st in the morning no food so as 'flat' hahah as I get. Once upon a time flat 10. Look amazing by the way but goodness me what a horrible year that was.
Sellotape -yes mine is hard when standing, led down its so squeedgy and soft. Also, glad you said about loose stools and another lady above said about gas. Well, I've never in my life been regular and if anything suffered slightly towards constipation which I believe may influence the trigger of a flare up. I have IBD ulcerative colitis/crohns. Anyway, basically I've had really regular looser stools daily ever since, and honestly embarrassingly terribl daily gas that reeks!!! Every night i feel big firm lumps in my right groin, same place, as gas is building and passing. Ive never had thay before! I literally can't live like it. Yes psychologically/how I look, but also physically. They can't just ignore this its wrong!!!! But they are. And as I say when I saw the consultant the other week I was insulted beyond belief. And if you read above about the letter they sent for my file Im mad about that. I've honestly been worrying since my 2nd baby that I've got bowel cancer. Of course because I have IBD no listens either and just blames it on ibd. When in fact, we are at higher risk so I should be listened to more!!! Anyway, I've known with time this isn't IBD related else I'd have had a flare by now and its NOT a flare. It's the DR. You Ladies have also reaffirmed that for me these 24hrs hours. Good news is I'm less concerned about it being colon cancer now. But honestly they can't ignore it. My gap was 2/3 cm after my first. It's now 4/5 cm. Xx

Forgot to attach

Thank you so much for sharing this information and photos, everyone, very insightful.
(One thing I wanted to mention that has helped me a little bit, is that I stopped eating raw vegetables as it turned out they were causing a lot of bloating, which then just looks HUGE when you have no muscle structure to hold it in! I cook all veg well now, helps break down the fibres.)

So this is me, 5 months after giving birth and 3 months into physio to find tension again. I’ve hardly budged. I am very petite and used to be a skinny size 6 UK. This is in the morning before eating to looks worse throughout the day. Really appreciate the support in this thread. Making me want to campaign for better postpartum care for women with DR rather then getting waved away.

I've had this since giving birth in 1999. I didn't realise what it was! I literally have what looks like a kangaroo pouch! I'm not sure that anything can be done at this stage in my life but it has blighted my confidence and how I look. The sad thing is no one ever mentioned it when I went for examinations, smears etc. 😢

This is mine. First thing in the morning too so as 'flat' as it gets. I checked again last night and its about 3 fingers/4cm wide. Only above the navel, not under which enhances the 'pregnant/carrying high look I think'. Also usually a size 6.

@sellotape12 yes "toddler belly" describes mine perfectly. I also dont understand why noone cares. In France, every woman gets 6 physio sessions after birth for pelvic health and DR issues. I had to rely on Google and forums like these to educate myself and avoid doing further damage.

@Ivycatseyes I'm exactly the same with the bowel issues. I started wondering if I had developed some kind of food intolerance , or bowel cancer! I can also feel lumps of gas in the evening when I'm lying in bed.

@IDidntKnowItWasAParty thanks for the cooked veg tip. I've cut various things out in a desperate attempt to reduce the ridiculous bloating.

Has everyone on here had a csection? I had two, there definitely seems to be a link?

@TheQueensCousin @Imanidiot1 it is a mystery to me why no one in the medical world mentions this problem - for years after childbirth I thought I was just overweight/untoned, my bloating was so bad my GP sent me for all the tests related to ovarian cancer, I kept googling and finally discovered DR, I'd never heard of it before and no one had mentioned it. In that time, in my efforts to flatten my tummy (size 6 before too!) I was doing all the exact WRONG exercises that make DR worse (plank, crunches, sit-ups, etc), I had to research what exercises to do. I get trapped gas so bad it sounds like a loud frog in my stomach (much hilarity for my family lol). I also found out (through Mumsnet) that I have a slipped rib (where my lowest rib 'flips' out of place), which started during pregnancy.

Yes I had a planned c-section but looking back, the DR started in my 4th trimester when I also had pelvic girdle pain. And I was huge. So glad I found this forum!
Yes so many people had not heard of it. It’s only thanks to a friend who advised I see a private womens health physio thy I heard of it. I experienced:

• my midwife tell me my doming during pregnancy was a sign of strong abs and I should continue doing crunches(!!)


• My GP, at 6 weeks postpartum shrugged his shoulders and said maybe it’s just baby weight.


• Unconvinced, I marched back to the maternity ward. A duty midwife said ues it looks odd but didn’t know. An obstetrics doctor and her medical student did blood tests, etc but had never heard of abdominal muscle separation
  


• …and my other GP is sending me for blood tests in case the bloating and runny toilet visits are crohns. It’s not! I swear it’s related.