I'm not backing you up because it's NOT in your best interest. However, I think you need to understand WHY and what's going on.
Regardless of what is causing the tenderness, you DO need to do ab exercises.There are a zazillion of them........I'm a personal trainer and KNOW that you can do everything in modification. I've worked with all kinds of neurological and neuromuscular disorders. It is a process AND you have to use PROGRESSION.
I've even had one client who had a C section and still had little to no feeling after SEVEN years. WE GOT IT BACK. Muscular contraction evokes neurological stimulation. When the nerves are being regenerated, it is NOT pleasant. I even had one paraplegic who told me her doc told her he would clip the nerves so that she couldn't feel the pain. NOT!!!! That is just part of the regeneration process. If he cut them, then she would NEVER feel anything! We opted NOT to have them clipped and he DID work through the process and the pain subsided.
The human body has an AMAZING capacity to heal itself, but you have to give it the right stimulus. Pain is an indication that something needs to CHANGE. Backing off is MANY TIMES NOT THE SOLULTION, and in many cases the WRONG one.
I am a pain management specialist and see clients all the time who have not done this or that because it hurt. If you re-educate muscles to do their job, strengthen stabilizers and put the body back into proper alignment........VOILA!!! Amazingly, pain goes away!!
The body is in a constant state of regeneration and repair......one of the laws of physical health............but you MUST understand the proper stimuli that HEALS it. Think of it as going through physical therapy.......NOT always a pleasant ordeal, but in the long run, it gets you where you want/need to be.