Medically unnecessary - repair of Diastasis recti

by TL
(Woodbridge VA)

I wanted to second the comments about the necessity of this repair with regard to chronic lower back pain. It angers me that insurance companies will pay for repeated chiropractic and acupuncture sessions, knee braces, PT, but not to have this repair done, in most cases.

I suffered from lower back pain for 20 years, on and off, following the birth of a very large baby at a very young age. I knew my core muscles were in bad shape, but the insurance companies had denied the repair several times over the years. They continued to pay for treatment for lower back pain, however. finally convinced an insurance company to pay for an abdominoplasty about 3 years ago. They repaired 3 small hernias as well as the diastasis recti. The lower back pain continued, however. I also began having pain in one knee.

Recently I started working with a personal trainer who is well versed in physical therapy and muscle movement. I learned that years of not being able to use my abdominal muscles to stabilize my balance has caused me to adapt my movements to rely on other muscle groups, and out of alignment movements were over stressing these groups and causing pain. The surgical repair alone was not enough - I'm now re-learning how to carry my body in alignment, and move correctly. The lower back pain is a rare occurrence and the chronic knee pain is a thing of the past. But, I'm undoing 25 years of moving incorrectly. It requires a lot of work and supervision by someone who knows how my body is supposed to move. I'm very thankful to know now what I know, but sorry all those years were wasted.