Nationwide — Ketia Moponda, a 19-year-old who dreamed of becoming a model, lost both legs and several fingers after mistaking meningitis for the flu. She collapsed in her college dorm just days after starting school and later underwent multiple life-saving amputations.
Eight days after beginning her studies at De Montfort University in Leicester, England, Moponda began feeling ill. She thought it was freshers’ flu, a common illness among new students, and decided to rest instead of seeking medical help.
Her condition quickly worsened. One night, she felt unusually drowsy at dinner and went straight to bed. The next day, she felt worse and called her cousin and best friend, telling the latter she thought she was “going to die.” When she stopped answering messages, her friend contacted the university.
Staff found her unconscious in her dorm room and rushed her to Leicester Royal Infirmary. Doctors diagnosed her with meningococcal septicaemia, a severe bacterial infection that causes meningitis and sepsis. She was placed in a coma and woke up two days later, unable to see or speak.
“I have no memory of any of this, but I’m lucky to be alive,” she told People.
Her illness caused organ failure and poor circulation, leaving her feet “green and swollen.” She also developed a flesh-eating infection that required a skin graft. In December, surgeons amputated her fingers, and in January, both of her legs were removed below the knees.
Moponda, who had lived an active lifestyle, said she cried when she woke up from the operations. “I felt like my whole life had just begun, and now I had to start all over again differently,” she said.
She was discharged in February and fitted with prosthetic legs in May. Now she is relearning how to walk and focusing on inspiring others. “This doesn’t make me less of a person. I am unapologetically me, and I want to help others feel confident about who they are and how they look,” she said.
Meningococcal disease spreads through saliva or mucus and can cause severe complications, including brain damage, kidney failure, or limb loss. Moponda hopes her story encourages others to take early symptoms seriously.