Rachel Tussey, a 47-year-old mother of three from Ohio, died after undergoing a cosmetic abdominoplasty procedure on February 25, 2026, at a Cincinnati-area outpatient surgery facility.
Tussey had built a TikTok following of more than 27,000 under the handle @midlifeunmuted, where she described herself as “over 40 & fabulous” and openly shared her journey leading up to the surgery.
Tussey documented the days leading up to her “mommy makeover” surgery on TikTok to help other women who may be contemplating a similar procedure.
Distractify reported that the surgery was scheduled for February 25, 2026, and Rachel shared updates leading up to the procedure with her followers.
In one of her final videos posted before going into surgery, Tussey expressed both enthusiasm and faith.
“Please pray. I know it’s gonna be great. I’ve waited a really long time for this,” she told viewers, adding, “I’m in good hands. I know God’s got my back. Let’s do this.”
She shared a video of herself moments before the surgery was scheduled, in which she said, “My husband is here. I’ve got a great support team. I’m really looking forward to this next chapter.”
The surgery, performed on February 25, 2026, was an abdominoplasty — commonly called a tummy tuck — a cosmetic procedure designed to remove excess abdominal skin and tighten underlying muscles.
According to her husband, Jeremy Tussey, the surgery initially appeared successful, with the doctor telling him the procedure “went great.”
Jeremy recalled getting a call at around 5:45 p.m. asking him to return to his wife’s recovery room.
The family alleges Rachel became unresponsive after staff administered pain medication following the abdominoplasty.
Fox19 reported that Jeremy said nurses told him the pain medication given to Rachel was “.5 Dilaudid and 150 fentanyl.”
Jeremy described the scene: “I got down in her ear a couple times and yelled Rachel, no answer.”
He said that’s when the nurse started CPR. “She put the bag on her, pumped it once or twice. The bag wasn’t sealed around her face. Then she walked around and grabbed some Narcan.”
Jeremy alleges the Plastic Surgery Group staff waited as long as 15 minutes before calling EMTs. Rachel was transported by ambulance to TriHealth Bethesda North Hospital, where doctors placed her on life support.
“She was without oxygen for over six minutes,” Jeremy said. “I was told last night that she’s brain dead.”
Despite efforts including CPR and the administration of emergency drugs, Tussey suffered a critical loss of oxygen. She was taken off life support on March 5.
Rachel is survived by her husband Jeremy and their three children: Tristan, Alec, and Livi.
In a video posted to his wife’s TikTok account on March 3, Jeremy did not hold back in his assessment of what took place.
“To me, it looks like incompetence. Somebody dropped the ball here,” he said.
Jeremy also said, “Somebody dropped the ball and killed my wife.”
The family has identified the practice involved as Tork Plastic Surgery, and said the procedure took place at an ambulatory surgery facility.
The practice’s website shows an office on Montgomery Road near the Bethesda North campus.
FOX19 reached out to Rachel’s doctor about these allegations via email, sent a follow-up, and called his office.
The surgeon involved has not publicly responded to media inquiries about the allegations surrounding the procedure, according to various media reports.
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