'There was always something wrong': Michelle Trachtenberg's friend says she suffered with many health issues before her death

39-year-old Trachtenberg died last Wednesday, (February 26), and was found dead in her home by her mum. Police sources confirmed her passing to The New York Post at the time, stating that her death is not being investigated as suspicious.

According to the report, Trachtenberg was found by her mother at around 8am on February 26 at One Columbus Place, a 51-story luxury apartment complex in Manhattan’s Central Park South neighbourhood, the sources said. The actress reported recently underwent a liver transplant.

The day after her death, on Thursday February 27, the star’s cause of death was ruled “undetermined” by the medical examiner after her family objected to an autopsy.

Now, a friend has been speaking to US Weekly about the star’s private health battles prior to her shock death and has also confirmed that she did have a liver transplant. “She was very open with those close to her about having the transplant,” the unnamed friend told the publication, “but she never went into detail.”

It's unclear why the Gossip Girl and Buffy the Vampire Slayer actress underwent the transplant, but sources told TMZ that the star may have had alcohol issues. Her friend, however, seemed to say that this was not the case. “She did drink, but not excessively in public,” she said. “She was never the type to party hard. In the end, she was more of a recluse.”

The friend went on to say that the Georgina Sparks actress had been unwell in multiple different ways in the final years of her life. “She had back issues, and then bone problems and she also fell a few times,” she said. “Whenever we spoke, there was something medically wrong.”

Another source apparently told the publication that the star was “thrown a lot of curveballs with her health, but she did her best not to let it get her down.”

Trachtenberg was quite open with some of her health problems, but also sometimes hit back at speculation that she may be poorly. She appeared on a red carpet with a cane in 2019 and shared a photo of her badly bruised ankle on Instagram in 2021, for example.

But, when she sparked concerns among her fans by posting photos of herself on Instagram where she appeared to have yellow skin, yellow eyes she hit back and claimed to be healthy when asked if she was okay.

"Explain to me how I look sick," she wrote in response to online speculation last year. She also reminded followers of her age, stating: "Did you lose a calendar and not realize I’m not 14? I’m 38. How sad for you to leave such a comment." She also denied undergoing plastic surgery, assuring fans that she was "happy and healthy." In another post, she said it was “good to be natural”, again seemingly defending her appearance.

Trachtenberg had reportedly recently had an extended stay in hospital and was released early this year. “The last time I saw her, something felt off,” an industry insider also told US Weekly. “You could sense something was going on. She was really frail and had been sick for a while.”

Ariana Rodriguez, a neighbour of Trachtenberg also told the outlet that she noticed how “svelte” she’d become in the days before her death and that she looked “less and less like herself.” She added: “[Michelle] smiled at everyone in the hallways, and she always said hi. I’m so sad that I won’t be seeing her anymore.”