A TikTok star mom, Rachel Tussey, has tragically passed away at the age of 47 following complications from a tummy tuck procedure she had documented for her thousands of followers online.
Rachel, a mother of three, had shared every step of her cosmetic surgery journey with her TikTok followers, who numbered more than 25,000. She posted several videos in the days leading up to the operation, scheduled for February 25, in which she expressed excitement and optimism about her “midlife glow-up” and “mommy makeover.”
In one video, filmed just before her surgery, Rachel appeared upbeat and confident. “Please pray. I know it’s gonna be great. I’ve waited a really long time for this,” she told viewers. “I’m in good hands. I know God’s got my back. Let’s do this.”
Her video showed her sitting in a hospital bed wearing a medical gown, with the caption “#midlifeglowup #mommymakeover” accompanying the footage. But what was supposed to be a routine procedure quickly turned into a nightmare for Rachel and her family.
According to her husband, Jeremy Tussey, who had been waiting in the recovery area, everything seemed fine at first. At 5:45 p.m., he received a call asking him to return to Rachel’s room. He briefly spoke with her doctor, who reassured him that the surgery had gone well. However, shortly after, Jeremy heard his wife calling out for him.
When he returned to the room, a nurse was asking Rachel how she was feeling after receiving medication for pain. But that’s when Jeremy noticed something wasn’t right.
“Next thing you know, I look down and her face is off color,” he recalled in an emotional update posted to TikTok on March 3. “I assumed it was from the surgery, you know, from a lack of blood.”
Soon after, Rachel stopped responding. Medical staff rushed to perform CPR, but Jeremy, who admitted he was no medical expert, could tell that something was terribly wrong. “I’m just a dumb construction worker, but I could tell something was wrong,” he said. “But there was no sense of urgency.”
Rachel was later rushed to TriHealth Bethesda North Hospital, where she was placed on life support. In a heart-wrenching update, Jeremy revealed that doctors informed him Rachel had gone more than six minutes without oxygen.
“I was told last night that she’s brain dead,” Jeremy said, fighting back tears.
As days passed, Jeremy was forced to make the agonizing decision to remove Rachel from life support. This decision was confirmed through a GoFundMe page created for the family, which described Rachel as a vibrant, caring woman who loved adventure and was always ready to help others in need.
“Rachel was truly full of life,” the page read. “She loved adventure, cherished her family deeply, and lived as an example of what community and compassion should look like. When someone needed help, Rachel was always the first person to step forward.”
Despite the immense grief, Rachel’s family has hired a lawyer to investigate the circumstances surrounding her death, although no lawsuit has been filed against the surgeon at this time.
Jeremy has expressed his belief that the tragedy may have been caused by negligence. “To me, it looks like incompetence. Somebody dropped the ball here,” he said.
Rachel leaves behind her heartbroken husband, Jeremy, and their three children: Tristan, Alec, and Livi.
The family has requested privacy during this incredibly difficult time. If you wish to contribute to Rachel’s memory, you can visit the GoFundMe page set up to help the family cope with the loss.
