About Us | Health & Harmony Massage & Wellness Center — Health & Harmony Massage & Wellness Center

Built by Hand. Fueled by Heart.
The real story of Health & Harmony.

How It Started

Nothing about Health & Harmony came easy — and that’s exactly why it’s special. It was built step-by-step, with determination, problem-solving, and a whole lot of “well, we’ll figure it out,” long before we ever had the space or staff we have today.

In August of 2011, my family moved to Michigan for my husband’s job. I had already been a licensed massage therapist for nearly five years, but now I was starting over — new city, no network, not a clue who to call or where to start.

So, on January 1, 2012, I rented a 99-square-foot room from a chiropractor — just me, a massage table, and clearance décor from Kohl’s trying their best. I was also in school full-time, so getting established was slow — but one client became two, and two became four. In 2013, I hired my first massage therapist and Health & Harmony officially became “we.”

A bedroom with a blue wall decorated with two black wire flower-shaped wall art pieces, white curtains with small lights, and a bed with beige bedding and a patterned blanket at the foot.

The OG. But this is version 2.0 of the room — v.1.0 was fire-engine red, and no, I didn’t pick it.

Growth & Challenges

A couple years in, the chiropractor I rented space from — a kind woman who believed in me long before I had a full schedule — passed away unexpectedly. It was heartbreaking. And while losing her was hard enough, it also meant everything about my work life changed overnight.

Her daughter and son-in-law took over the practice, and because my business operated independently, I ended up in a situation I didn’t choose — but had to navigate anyway. They asked me to expand massage into their flagship location while continuing at the original office, and with more clients seeking therapeutic care, I did what I’ve always done: adapted, worked hard, and kept showing up for the people who relied on me.

The business continued to grow, the team grew along with it, and every challenge pushed me a little closer to where Health & Harmony was ultimately meant to be.

A bedroom with a bed covered in a red blanket, pillow, and a yellow blanket, a nightstand with a lit lamp, and three framed floral pictures with black decorative wall sconces on a yellow wall.

Our brief pastel era (the butter yellow walls were not my choice)!

When we finally moved into our first standalone office on Michigan Avenue, I thought we’d reached a milestone — and we had. But, as it turned out, that office had no heat, no AC, constant construction, and a basement music studio doing its best Cheech & Chong impression during massage hours. We learned a lot about what matters in a wellness space.

A woman standing next to a sign on a wooden door for a health and wellness center, smiling and gesturing towards the open sign. The sign indicates the center is open, with hours listed for Monday through Saturday.

Our first real door sign on Michigan Ave. I can't believe we opened at 8:30 AM!

Recognize this future front desk superstar?

So, after just 18 months, I found the perfect space on the corner of Coolidge and Saginaw in East Lansing, where Health & Harmony truly became what it was meant to be. We grew our team, launched Harmony Naturals with our first real lab, and established the therapeutic specialty work we’re known for today — especially chronic headaches, neck/shoulder issues, and long-term pain patterns.

Then came the hardest stretch of my life. I went through a major shoulder surgery, three months of frozen shoulder, a state-mandated three-month long COVID shutdown, a devastating loss - every parent’s worst nightmare come true, and a fall that led to two knee surgeries. Altogether, I was out for about 15 of those horrible 21 months.

I couldn’t show up the way I needed to — physically or emotionally — and my team held this place together. We made it through because of them. And Lindsay, our Office Manager, was quite literally the wind beneath my wings.

Reinvention — Our New Home

A mid-century modern commercial building with brick walls, large rectangular windows with maroon accents, a flat white roof extending over the entrance supported by brick columns, and a parking lot with marked spaces and landscaped areas with rocks and bushes.

Our home on East Saginaw.

By 2023, we had outgrown East Lansing. I bought a large office condo in Lansing — and it needed everything.

The place was a fever dream before we touched it. Disgusting, old, mismatched carpets (older than many of our therapists) with glue that clung to the concrete like it was protecting national secrets. Wallpaper that didn’t just peel — it detonated — taking half the drywall with it and demanding gallons of spackle, specialty primer, regular primer, and paint just to make the walls look like walls again. Fluorescent garage lights everywhere - about 50 fixtures in all, holding a grand total of 120 four-foot bulbs (I finally found a place in Mason that would recycle them). Five completely different kinds and colors of trim. A handyman who removed the wrong drop ceiling. And, for good measure, one scratched cornea (Payton), dozens of Band-Aids, a few breakdowns, and every other misadventure you can imagine.

And into the madness stepped my son, Payton — seventeen, fearless, and absolutely essential. He and a rotating crew of teenagers ripped out all 2,600 square feet of carpet, laid every plank of vinyl flooring, tore out the old baseboards, installed cove base, swapped out every last doorknob, and built everything that needed building. Ammon helped us with the things we didn’t know how to do, because there were a lot of things we didn’t know how to do. Lindsay, Payton, and I painted until our arms gave out — and then painted some more. Lindsay worked on the slat walls in the retail area until her brain nearly bled.

And through all of it, I kept my full massage schedule — working on clients all day, then working on the office until 2:00 a.m. most nights. My personal record was walking out the door at 5:00 a.m., grabbing coffee, and coming right back for my 9:00 a.m. client. I think I showered first.

And after all of that, we finally opened our doors in August 2023 — with more rooms, ample parking, a proper Harmony Naturals lab, an actual break room, and a laundry setup that no longer brings us to tears. We even have hot coffee in the Zen Den every day (mostly consumed by Bea and me, if we’re being honest). And, it only took me a little over a year to get everything decorated, but it was worth every late night.

We love this space. It feels like home. And we’ve kept growing — more therapists, new services, esthetics (with a few estheticians to match), body tempering, and red-light therapy. The best part?

This isn’t the finish line. It’s the foundation — and we’re just getting started.