Diastasis Recti

          Do you know what "Diastasis Recti" is? Up until a couple of months ago, I had no clue. After giving birth, my midwife informed that I had a significant split in my abdominal muscles. I have never been told this before, although I'm sure I must have been checked before. It just must never have been an issue (which would explain why I have no recollection of it). Anyhow, my midwife cautioned me not to attempt to sit up using my abdominal muscles and showed me how to properly modify my movements. She said that a piece of my intestines could come through this weakened area if I overexerted myself, which could then mean I'd need surgery for an umbilical hernia.
         I'm so thankful for her help and insight into this, but I began overthinking it. Every move I made to sit up quietly while holding a baby, I wondered if I'd just caused a hernia. My overactive imagination kicked into hyperdrive. Everytime I would even just lay on my side, I swear I could feel my intestines sliding out of my abdominal cavity. I would feel my tummy regularly wondering if it would heal and praying fervently about it. I even asked my small group to pray about it. I would try to remember how she had checked it, feeling great because of avoiding stitches this delivery but crippled because of this muscular separation. It was crazy how paranoid I became. Now I am a full eleven weeks out, and my gap which bridged four fingers is down to two (which is within normal parameters). At my follow-up appointment with my midwife, she even gave me special exercises to reduce the gap even more. I've starting doing them, but I need to be more consistent about it. Would you believe it took me a whole two weeks to even look through the sheet of info and attempt to do them for the first time?
          I heard my three year old yelling very loudly while I was upstairs nursing the baby one day. She was shouting, "Jesus is POWERFUL! " When I asked her about it, she said she had learned it at church. I loved her enthusiasm over it; and from time to time when I am frustrated about a situation, I holler it along with her. It seems to really put things into perspective.  My thoughts and paranoia can feel overwhelming, but as even my three year old knows there is nothing more powerful than Jesus!