Collage: Roberto Caruso; Model Photo: Stocksy United
Your 10th anniversary is a milestone worthy of a night out. Sonia Sakos*, a mom of two kids ages four and seven, was ready to celebrate when she left work and hopped on the subway to meet her husband and the sitter at home.
Her mood changed when a well-meaning commuter eyed her midsection and offered a seat. Sakos declined, embarrassed, and shuffled along to another part of the train. But it happened again?and then once more?before Sakos, now mortified, reached her stop. ?I got home, dropped my bag and burst into tears. I felt so awful, we didn?t go out that night after all,? she says.
Though it had never happened in such rapid succession, this wasn?t the first time someone assumed Sakos was pregnant long after she?d had her last C-section. Having suffered these misunderstandings for years, she came to resent the gentle slope of her belly and decided she had to do something about it. Through a mothers? group on Facebook, she found a physiotherapist who specialized in postpartum diastasis recti, a condition she (correctly) suspected she had.
What is diastasis"

Also known as abdominal separation, diastasis recti occurs when the rectus abdominis?the two large vertical banks of muscles that meet in the centre of your abdomen (known as the ?six-pack?)?pull apart from their attachment point, the linea alba that runs down the body?s midline. The largest of the abdominal muscles, the rectus abdominis works together with...