BILLINGS — A Billings woman began 2025 with an effort to get fit, but a 45-minute spin class had the opposite effect.
Morgynn Buxbaum, 28, not only ended up hospitalized for a week with a rare critical condition, but she's now having long-term symptoms months later. She hopes to share her story to help others from experiencing the same pain.
See the video for this story below:
Buxbaum is a licensed practical nurse and a mother and now, a rhabdomyolysis survivor.
Rhabdomyolysis is a rare and life-threatening illness that occurs when dead muscle cells enter the bloodstream.
"Every step I take, it feels like I'm stepping on knives... I went to lay down for bed, and I was in tears. I couldn't lay down. I couldn't lift my legs to get into bed," Buxbaum said Tuesday.
In February, Buxbaum took a spin class with a friend. A few days after the class, Buxbaum noticed that the post-workout soreness was becoming more painful and irregular.
Less than a week later, Buxbaum was hospitalized for a week following her injuries.
"(It can be caused by a lot) of different reasons. It can be traumatic, non-traumatic. It can be exertional, non-exertional, can be certain medications, infections," said the hospitalist at Intermountain Health, Dr. Brandon Weeden.
According to Weeden, rhabdomyolysis is more common in the elderly. As a 28-year-old, Buxbaum's condition was quite rare.
In his practice, Weeden says most elderly patients with rhabdomyolysis get the diagnosis after falling and were found immobilized. However, for young people like Buxbaum, it's common to receive the diagnosis after overexertion during exercise.
Weeden says when exercising correctly, the muscles can stretch and rebuild. But in Buxbaum's case, part of the tissue has seeped into the bloodstream, completely, making rhabdomyolysis extremely painful.
"So, when you have this cell death in the muscles, it causes all of the contents of the cells to break open and go into the bloodstream... Myoglobin, which is part of the muscles, it gets released into the bloodstream, and then it's excreted through the kidneys," said Weeden on Tuesday.
Besides severe pain and muscle fatigue, Weeden says one of the most common symptoms of rhabdomyolysis is dark colored urine, similar to tea or cola.
Buxbaum describes her pain as severe, "multiplied by 100," post-workout soreness.
"I tell everyone it was worse than labor pain," she said.
Now, three months post-hospital visit, Buxbaum still has a hard time managing the pain and muscle soreness.
"I can do my job, yes, but I feel it at lunch time. I feel it the moment I walk home," said Buxbaum.
Buxbaum wants the general population to know that rhabdomyolysis is preventable. It starts with hydration, stretching and limits in exercise.
"Just being able to listen to your body. You know, I thought I was. I thought I was doing everything properly, and it turned out I wasn't," she said.
"Staying hydrated before and after going to the gym, making sure that you're not overexerting yourself (prevents rhabdomyolysis)... Being hydrated is super key. Because, hydration allows you to recover, and it allows you to flush your kidneys," said Weeden.
