SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - Arisbeth Munoz stood on two new prosthetic legs Thursday — a milestone more than a year and a half in the making for the Logan Heights mom whose battle with flesh-eating disease left her with multiple amputations.
"I'm feeling, feeling excited," Munoz said.
Munoz's ordeal began when a pain in her side and vomiting sent her to the emergency room. There, she tested positive for the flu and Group A strep bacteria — a common bacteria which, in rare cases, can trigger sepsis and flesh-eating necrotizing fasciitis. Munoz developed both.
Remarkably, she survived. But the battle left her with amputations of her arm and both legs.
When she woke from a coma, she saw the gangrene that had taken hold.
"I woke up and saw my arms and legs, darkness,” Munoz said.
The 40-year-old mother has two autistic sons.
Right after our story about Munoz aired in June 2025, donations poured into a GoFundMe campaign, which climbed from $500 to more than $57,000. The funds helped her with the mountain of costs not covered by insurance.
"I was crying. I can't believe it," Munoz said that June.
She suffered several setbacks, including infections. In December, she received a prosthetic arm. Then, on Thursday, she was fitted with her new prosthetic legs.
After several attempts, Munoz stood on her new legs — with some help from her caregiver.
"I will walk again," Munoz said.
When asked how she felt in that moment, Munoz said she was grateful.
"Excited, grateful with all the people who supported me, but first with God," Munoz said.
She said the legs represent something bigger than mobility.
"It means more independence and a better life," Munoz said.
She'll need a lot of physical therapy to learn to use the legs, but she is determined to walk to the park with her sons.
"It's too much important for me, that part," a tearful Munoz said. "Playing and see them happy, to see me in a better condition."
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