A note from Angus:
I first met Coral as a patient. She’d been coming to see me for a while before she ever mentioned that she was training as a sports massage therapist and when she did, it wasn’t a surprise. She had the kind of curiosity about the body that you notice pretty quickly.
When one of her clients mentioned her name to me, I reached out straightaway. We met at the clinic at Thrive Gym in Tunbridge Wells, and within about ten minutes of talking, I knew she’d be a brilliant fit for the team. What she brings isn’t just skill, it’s a genuine care for the people she works with and a philosophy about the body that sits very naturally alongside how we work at AG Osteopathy & Sports Clinic in Tunbridge Wells.
I’ll hand things over to her now. In her own words, here’s a bit more about who she is and how she works.
My Story: In Coral's Own Words
I Didn’t Plan This (But Looking Back, Maybe I Should Have)
Growing up, I wanted to be a dentist. Then a vet. I researched both pretty thoroughly before quickly realising I couldn’t handle blood or open wounds, so those dreams got shut down fast.
What stayed with me was the curiosity. I’ve always loved animals, always been active,horse riding, tennis, swimming, the gym. And I’ve always been fascinated by the body. Hormones, nutrition, how stress shows up physically.
When I was diagnosed with PCOS in my twenties, that interest deepened into something more serious. I kept researching, kept reading, kept thinking about how much we still don’t fully understand about what we carry around every day.
None of that felt like a career path at the time. I spent five years in new business development at a design agency, and I loved it, I still do, actually. I work both. Being busy and building something seems to run in the family; my grandparents ran three hairdressing salons and a taxi service in South East London from the time they were 21.
But the body never left my mind.
The Comment That Changed Everything
I’d been having osteopathy and soft tissue treatment since I was a teenager, a side effect of falling off horses regularly. I always admired the skill involved, and I loved that specific feeling you get when something that’s been painful finally releases.
Then one morning, while I was getting dressed for the office, my partner looked at me and said: “You look like a physiotherapist.”
He meant nothing by it. But I couldn’t stop thinking about it.
I started looking into physiotherapy, then osteopathy, and eventually I landed on sports massage. It clicked immediately. I could see how I could help people with pain. I could give them that feeling I’d experienced so many times myself, the release, the relief, the reset. I could expand into dry needling, cupping, lymphatic drainage. I could even, one day, work with horses.
A couple of days later, I signed up for my first course.
Training Around a Full-Time Job (and My Nan's Supper)
I trained with Active IQ, travelling from Tunbridge Wells to Herne Bay every weekend for practical sessions while studying anatomy in the evenings after work. It was a lot. But my grandmother lived in Herne Bay at the time, which meant I got to stop for an early supper and a cup of tea on the seafront after every long day of practicals.
I treasure those evenings. She’s a big part of why that period of my life felt worthwhile rather than just exhausting.
Starting Out: Building Confidence Session by Session
I started with mobile appointments, friends first, then their friends, then strangers. I carried my treatment table into people’s homes and got on with it.
There were moments of real uncertainty. Going into someone’s home you’ve never met before, trusting your new skills, figuring out your touch, it pushes you out of your comfort zone in a way that’s uncomfortable and completely necessary.
One thing that helped: I wasn’t starting from zero. I’d been receiving treatment since I was a teenager, observing skilled practitioners, filing things away. I learn by watching and doing. So when the course began, I already had a foundation I hadn’t fully realised I was building.
Over time, I’ve developed what I can only describe as a feel for the body. I can often pick out tension and restriction a client didn’t know was there. Every session is different because every body is different and that’s exactly why I love it. I’m constantly tested. It never gets boring.
How I Work: What You Can Expect From a Session With Me
Your Muscles Are Probably More Exhausted Than You Think
We push our bodies hard every day, even those of us who aren’t athletes. Long hours at a desk, chronic stress, strength training, running around after kids. Our muscles get tired, they tighten, and most of us ignore the early signs until something bigger gets our attention.
That initial niggle you’ve been half-noticing for a few weeks? Left alone, it tends to become poor posture, or nerve pain, or a headache that doesn’t quite go away. I see sports massage as something that should be part of your monthly routine, not something you do when you’ve finally broken down.
A lot of my clients haven’t seen a sports massage therapist before, and honestly, you can tell when you start working. The muscles aren’t just knotty, they’re solid. It can take two or three sessions before the nervous system really starts to let go. That’s completely normal. That’s the process.
That Post-Session Feeling? It's a Good Sign
If you leave feeling floaty, heavy, or like you could sleep for a week, that’s not something going wrong. That’s your nervous system switching from fight-or-flight into rest-and-digest. Endorphins are releasing. Your body is doing exactly what it should do when someone finally pays it some proper attention.
Drink water. Rest if you can. Let it land.
The Pressure Is Always Yours to Control
Sports massage doesn’t have to hurt to work. You won’t come out of a session with me looking bruised, and you don’t have to grit your teeth through it. The pressure we use is always a conversation and it can change from session to session depending on how you’re feeling that day.
You don’t have to be an athlete. You don’t even have to be in pain. Every session is tailored specifically to you: your body, your lifestyle, what you’re carrying that week.
Why I Joined the Team at AG Osteopathy
I was already a patient of Angus’s before I became a therapist. When I started my own practice and clients needed to see an osteopath, I referred them to him without hesitation because I trusted what I’d experienced myself.
When the connection eventually came full circle and he reached out about joining the team, I met him at the clinic at Thrive Gym. I walked in and immediately loved it. Sunshine through the windows. A calm, peaceful energy. Kind people. I knew this was my community.
Working alongside skilled osteopaths means I’m constantly learning. And for my clients, it means they have access to a fuller picture of support in one place, sports massage and osteopathic care working together rather than in isolation.
Book a Sports Massage at AG Osteopathy, Tunbridge Wells
I’m available for sports massage appointments here at AG Osteopathy, based at Thrive Gym in the heart of Tunbridge Wells town centre. Whether you’re managing something that’s been building for a while, recovering from training, or just overdue a proper reset, come in.
AG Osteopathy offers osteopathy, sports massage, and soft tissue therapy in Tunbridge Wells. Our clinic is based at Thrive Gym, with appointments available throughout the week.
