Trinidad to the world: Pro golfer told she’d never play again tees up with New Dimensions Wellness
By: Josh Thomas
Find out what she did instead
“You’re done with golf. You’re never going to run again. You may never walk again. You need immediate surgery and even then, your playing days are done.”
When Trinidad & Tobago professional golfer and University of Central Florida women’s golf alum Monifa Sealy was told these words by her doctor, she couldn’t believe what she was hearing. She spent her entire childhood as one of the most successful, up-and-coming golfers from her country and had eyes on a professional career in the LPGA.
This wasn’t what she spent her whole life painstakingly working for.
“It was by far one of the worst things to happen to me,” Sealy said. “This was the first time I had been put out of golf for such a long time.”
Sealy was at a traditional gym training doing deadlifts. In the middle of a lift on the way up, she heard a loud pop in her back.
“All of a sudden I couldn’t feel my feet for about 20 seconds. I literally couldn’t move. I couldn’t sit down, I couldn’t lay down,” Sealy said. “I had to be taken to the hospital where they did an MRI.”
That’s when she was given the news. She was diagnosed with acute sciatic issues and severe ligament damage in her lumbar spine. All the momentum she was building toward a career in the LPGA was taken from her in seconds. She was told she needed immediate surgery or she risked never being able to have normal movement again. All while her entire family was still at home in Trinidad and she was isolated alone.
Enter New Dimensions. A fellow golfer mentioned the premier wellness club to Mo when they heard she was dealing with injury issues. Her friend assured her she’d get the advanced care it would take to return Mo to pro form.
She got started and hit the ground running. With New Dimensions and their unique blend of physical therapy and advanced health treatments, Sealy started to see progress at a rate she couldn’t believe. She especially found help and inspiration in their mental performance program with cofounder Justin Cobb.
“Working on Neuro Emotional Technique and the mental aspect of performance with Justin was incredibly powerful. I found healing not only on the golf course, but in my personal life as well,” Sealy said. “I learned an unbelievable amount physically and mentally at New Dimensions. When you align your body and mind with the goals you want in life, you unlock your full potential.”
When you speak to those who have trained with Sealy, her professional level of commitment and passion for her craft is relentless.
“Mo is family,” New Dimensions cofounder Justin Cobb said. “It’s been an honor for her to place her trust in us in getting her career back on track. To have something you love taken from you is painful for anyone, let alone for that to be a professional goal of yours. To come so far in such a short amount of time is a testament to her character.”
Since training with New Dimensions, Sealy has found her way back onto the course and is working every day with her goal of the LPGA clear in sight. Last month, she played in two tournaments and had extremely encouraging performances in qualifiers. After being out of the game so long and a far shot from being told she’d never play again, the progress for Sealy is unbelievable and she is confident her game and career will only improve and grow from here.
“I want to be the first woman golfer from Trinidad in the Hall of Fame,” Sealy said. “I know that I can do it. I hadn’t played for a year and a half and I’ve been fairly pleased with what I’ve seen so far, not even being close to full form. My game has completely changed and I’m still growing with that. The results are going to come. Keep on working, keep on pushing harder.”