An influencer has died following complications from a tummy tuck procedure, her husband has revealed.
Rachel Tussey, who went by the username @midlifeunmuted on TikTok, where she had 80,000 followers, shared regular updates in the lead-up to her surgery, adding the hashtag to her videos “#mommymakeover.”
A few days after the February 25 surgery, Rachel’s husband, Jeremy, posted a lengthy video on his wife’s page to explain that she had suffered serious complications following the procedure and her condition was declining.
He recalled Rachel’s doctor telling him the operation went well before he left for the day. He said he was talking to his wife after the surgery in the recovery room when it became clear something was wrong.
“Next thing you know, I look down, and her face is off color,” Jeremy said. “I assumed it was from the surgery, you know, from a lack of blood.”
Rachel became unresponsive, he said, and the hospital staff began performing CPR. His wife was later transported to TriHealth Bethesda North Hospital, where she was placed on life support.
“I was told last night that she’s brain dead,” Jeremy said, explaining that the doctors told him she went six minutes without oxygen.
In a statement shared with People, Rachel’s surgeon reiterated that the surgery was successful and completed without any complications.
“Because Rachel was scheduled to remain overnight, her post-operative monitoring was overseen by staff contracted by the independent facility, not by my practice. I was later notified that her condition had unexpectedly changed and immediately returned to assist with her care and transfer to Bethesda North Hospital, where I remained with the family and continued to offer support,” the surgeon’s statement read.
“I have discontinued all procedures at that surgery center. Out of respect for Rachel and her family, and due to patient privacy laws, I will not comment further.”
According to the family’s GoFundMe page, Jeremy decided to remove Rachel from life support on March 5. Two weeks later, on March 17, Rachel died.
“It is with deep regret and sadness that we share the news of Rachel’s passing,” the family’s lawyer, Bernie Layne, said in a statement shared with The Cincinnati Enquirer. “We would like to thank everyone, around the world, who faithfully prayed for Rachel and our entire family throughout this extraordinarily difficult time in our family’s life.”
The GoFundMe page — which has earned $37,565 out of its $40,000 goal as of Thursday morning — was created to help the family cover the additional medical expenses that arose as a result of the procedure.
“Rachel was truly full of life. She loved adventure, cherished her family deeply, and lived as an example of what community and compassion should look like,” the page’s description read.
“She dedicated countless hours helping others, including organizing donation efforts in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, collecting supplies and personally delivering essential items to those in need. When someone needed help, Rachel was always the first person to step forward.”
The late influencer is survived by her husband and their three children, Tristan, Alec and Livi.