Building a Brand That Challenges the Healthcare System with Lori Webb and Emily Albers

I had the honor of being joined by two visionary women: Lori Valenti-Webb and Emily Albers, co-founders of Health House—a groundbreaking health and wellness studio taking shape in Cobblestone Village, Rolesville, North Carolina. Though still under construction, the energy and mission behind Health House are already making waves.

Lori and Emily’s collaboration is rooted in powerful personal stories and a shared commitment to transforming the way people experience wellness.

Lori’s Journey: From Chronic Illness to Wellness Innovation

Lori Valenti-Webb’s path to creating Health House is deeply personal. A seasoned business owner, Lori’s life took a dramatic turn three years ago following a mild case of COVID-19. Though her symptoms initially seemed manageable, her health quickly declined. After a series of fainting spells, severe heart arrhythmias, and debilitating fatigue, she was hospitalized and eventually diagnosed with a range of complex conditions. Her post-viral symptoms included tachycardia, bradycardia, post-exertional malaise (PEM), and near-total physical exhaustion, making even a short walk to the bathroom an overwhelming task.

Though medications helped stabilize her, Lori found herself navigating an often unresponsive and fragmented healthcare system. Frustrated by the lack of holistic support and driven by a relentless desire to heal, she began journaling her experiences and experimenting with alternative therapies like red light therapy, cold plunges, and detoxing. She documented what worked, what didn’t, and began dreaming of a space where comprehensive wellness could be housed under one roof.

Emily’s Perspective: A Veteran of Western Medicine Sees the Gaps

Emily Albers brings nearly three decades of experience in the Western medical system, having worked both as a nurse and on the administrative side of healthcare. Her clinical background gave her insight into the compassion and care patients deserve, while her administrative experience exposed her to the profit-driven underbelly of the healthcare industry, where decisions are often made based on financial return rather than patient wellbeing.

Seeking a better way to support patients, Emily launched a podcast called What the Health Care, where she interviewed both professionals and patients disillusioned with the system. It was through this podcast that she connected with Lori. After their interview, Lori reached out with a vision, one that resonated deeply with Emily’s own frustrations and hopes for a better, more supportive wellness ecosystem.

The Birth of Health House: A Place for Holistic Healing

Health House is the result of two minds aligning on one powerful mission: to create a sanctuary of wellness, healing, and preventative care that addresses the root causes of illness while promoting long-term vitality. Located in Rolesville’s Cobblestone Village, Health House is more than just a gym or studio. It’s a fully integrated wellness facility.

When guests walk through the doors, they’ll enter a thoughtfully curated space that combines movement, recovery, and practitioner-led services. The foundational pillar is a movement studio offering a variety of classes, including:

• Pilates
• Barre
• Reformer Pilates
• Yoga
• Dance
• Breathwork and meditation

Importantly, the studio was designed with accessibility in mind. Lori, who continues to live with certain chronic conditions, emphasized movement forms that support physical healing without taxing the nervous system. For example, standing up alone can cause her heart rate to spike to 180 bpm, so the studio offers lower-impact, sustainable fitness modalities suitable for all energy levels.

Complementary Modalities for Total Wellness

But Health House is much more than movement. It offers over 25 wellness modalities designed to support healing and recovery from all angles:

• Red light therapy
• Infrared saunas
• Cold plunges
• Compression boots
• Vitamin C-infused showers
• Oxygen bar
• Sound therapy beds
• Vibration plates for bone density
• Detoxing and stretch therapies

And the list keeps growing.

In addition, a team of about 10 skilled practitioners specializing in areas like lymphatic drainage, craniosacral therapy, and integrative medicine will work under the same roof. This creates a one-stop destination for whole-body wellness—something that’s currently missing in most communities, especially for those managing chronic conditions.

A Community-Centered Space for All

Health House isn’t just about the services. It’s about the people. Many of the instructors and practitioners involved have firsthand experience with chronic illness or long wellness journeys. Others are seasoned professionals with decades of experience in fitness and health. This dynamic blend of perspectives makes Health House a powerful meeting place of minds and methods.

Whether you’re an athlete recovering from injury, someone battling autoimmune issues, or simply seeking to prioritize your health, Health House was built to support you. Its vision is to create community, promote longevity, and offer evidence-informed, supportive wellness practices. All under one roof.

Building a Team with Heart: The People Behind Health House

As Health House prepares to open its doors, one of the most remarkable stories unfolding is not just about the services offered, but the people offering them. With over 30 team members already involved prior to opening, co-founders Lori and Emily have curated a powerful collective of like-minded practitioners, instructors, and professionals drawn to the mission of holistic healing.

This rapid growth wasn’t a result of aggressive recruiting—it was organic. Many practitioners reached out directly, compelled by what Health House represents. As Emily shared, “People are finally ready to invest in their health,” and they’re eager to be part of a solution that acknowledges the complexity of modern wellness.

Lori echoed that sentiment, reflecting on the profound passion expressed during initial calls with potential hires: “Their hearts are on fire to help people.” These aren’t just professionals looking for jobs; they are people with personal stories, deep convictions, and a shared vision. Many are disillusioned by limitations in conventional healthcare environments and are excited to serve in a space that values a broader approach to healing.

The hiring process, while emotionally rewarding, has been intense. With 37 team members on board, Lori shared the difficulty in saying “no” when so many applicants genuinely aligned with the mission. “No one asks about pay. They just say, ‘I’m so grateful to be part of this,’” she explained. The result is a team deeply invested in the well-being of future clients and in each other.

A One-of-a-Kind Wellness Experience
So what truly sets Health House apart from gyms or traditional wellness studios?

At its core, Health House is not just a fitness center, and it’s not just a spa. It’s a carefully designed fusion of movement, recovery, and practitioner-led healing that addresses the full spectrum of wellness needs, from chronic illness to athletic recovery to stress management.

Emily captured the essence perfectly: “We’re not just a gym or just a spa. We’re all-encompassing.”

This holistic, integrative approach has been informed by Lori’s own personal healing journey. She didn’t simply research these tools—she lived them. From red light therapy to cold plunges, she’s tried nearly every modality being offered at Health House. Her experiences have shaped the layout and sequencing of services, providing clients with both options and intentional guidance.

Health House isn’t confined to those with chronic illnesses. In fact, it’s highly synergistic with athletic training. Recovery tools like cold plunges, infrared saunas, and red light therapy help rebuild tissues, reduce inflammation, and promote longevity for athletes. The goal is to de-silo wellness—ensuring people don’t just train, but recover, reflect, and heal.

As Lori noted, “We are so much about just the word healing—in totality.”

Educating the Community on a New Model of Wellness

One of the biggest hurdles in launching Health House has been helping the public understand just how unique it is. As their marketing director, I describe the process as “re-educating” people about what’s possible in modern wellness. In a world used to gyms, spas, and primary care offices, Health House defies simple categorization.

To demystify the experience, the team developed a “signature series” to walk new clients through what a typical visit might look like. This sample journey helps potential members envision how to use the space effectively, even if they don’t know where to start.

A Sample “Day in the Life” at Health House

then recover with a sauna session. Others may come looking for a structured wellness experience—and that’s where the Signature Series comes in.

Here’s what a sample day might look like for someone new to Health House:

1. Begin with Heat: Start with a sauna session to elevate body temperature and activate circulation.
2. Cold Plunge: Move into a cold plunge to reduce inflammation and train the nervous system. Lori shared how this combination personally helped her gain clarity and resilience.
3. Salt Booth Session: Sit in a salt booth for 10 minutes, simulating the benefits of breathing ocean air, great for skin and respiratory health.
4. Red Light Therapy: Finish with red light exposure to lock in the wellness benefits and support cellular regeneration.

This sequence supports mental clarity, physical recovery, and inflammation reduction. Of course, the exact flow can be customized based on individual needs. Not everyone can tolerate heat or cold, and the Health House team is prepared to offer alternatives.

For clients focused on bone health, there’s a specially designed stretch lab featuring:

• Rebounders
• Inversion tables
• Vibration plates
• Compression tools

These modalities help address bone density and mobility in a way that feels accessible yet powerful.

Sound Beds: The Hidden Gem of the Triangle

Among the standout features of Health House are its innovative sound beds, which Lori and Emily experienced firsthand. These beds combine narration, guided meditation, vibration therapy, temperature variation, and sound frequencies to create an immersive relaxation experience.

“You’re completely encapsulated,” Lori explained. The sound bed experience offers a rare opportunity to reset the nervous system and escape daily stress. The Triangle area of North Carolina currently has few, if any, other locations offering this level of sensory immersion.

For those struggling with chronic stress, burnout, or mental fatigue, these 30-minute sessions could be transformative.

Personalized Wellness: A Customizable Experience for Every Guest

Health House has taken an intentional approach to designing what it calls its “signature series”, a curated flow of wellness experiences that integrates movement, recovery, and mindfulness. While this series offers a powerful starting point, the real beauty lies in its flexibility. Guests are empowered to tailor their day based on how they feel and what their bodies need.

Whether someone wants to start with a Pilates class and follow it with deep recovery in a sauna, or skip movement entirely and indulge in a long soak in the vitamin C showers, Health House offers the freedom to build a day that fits. As Lori explained, “It’s all catered to what people feel like that day.”

There are foundational sequences, like sauna followed by cold plunge and salt therapy, but every modality—from breathwork and red light therapy to vibration plates and compression boots—can be mixed and matched to suit individual goals or energy levels. For some, the day might end with a calming sound bed session; for others, it might begin there.

A Community Centered in Calm and Healing

One of the most celebrated features of Health House is the sound bed. It is a tool that blends vibration, guided meditation, and healing frequencies into one deeply immersive experience. The response from the founders themselves says it all. Emily was so moved by her first session that she immediately decided to purchase one for her own home.

“I struggle to shut my brain down,” Emily admitted. “But almost instantaneously, I was meditating. I had two people talking in the room next to me and I was still completely in it. I sat up and looked at Lori and said, ‘I have to have this in my house.’”

This speaks to a broader truth: many people are living in a constant state of fight or flight without realizing it. Health House is designed to disrupt that pattern, not just with sound beds, but with every tool, class, and treatment it offers.

A Space That Evolves With You

As Allie Haney noted throughout the conversation, Health House doesn’t fit into a traditional wellness category. It’s not simply a gym, a spa, or a medical office. It’s all of those things and more, blending modern science, holistic care, and community into one transformative space. And while the team has developed a thoughtful core experience, it remains deeply committed to honoring individuality.

With more than 25 wellness modalities, 60 movement classes weekly, and 10 specialized practitioners under one roof, Health House offers a new standard of integrative care. Whether you’re dealing with chronic illness, seeking recovery as an athlete, or simply looking to take proactive steps toward better health, this is a place that meets you where you are.

As Lori joked at the end of the conversation, “This is making us so poor”—a playful nod to how deeply they’ve invested in building something truly life-changing. From reformers to sound beds, every decision has been driven by passion, purpose, and the belief that healing should be accessible, customizable, and rooted in community.

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