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Sovereign Nations. Different Laws. One Complicated Payments System. On Indigenous Peoples' Day, it's time to examine why tribal gaming, ...
Behind every authentic wellness company lies a story. Often one born from desperation, discovery, and a determination to help others avoid the same struggles. In an industry where skepticism runs high and consumers question whether brands truly understand their needs, a founder's personal experience can serve as powerful proof of genuine commitment. The path from personal health crisis to wellness innovation is increasingly becoming the foundation upon which trusted wellness brands are built.
During a recent Qredible Live Broadcast, Dr. Lisa Piper and Wendy Cohen Osborne, co-founders of Code Health, shared valuable insights on how their bioenergetic wellness company emerged from Dr. Piper's life-threatening COVID experience and decades of scientific research. This discussion highlighted the critical importance of authentic origin stories, complementary entrepreneurial partnerships, and mission-driven business building to establish lasting credibility with health-conscious consumers.
Dr. Lisa Piper's story begins like many during the pandemic, with severe illness and uncertainty. But her path to recovery took an unexpected turn that would ultimately reshape her entire career trajectory.
"Like many people, I got very sick with COVID and I'd never been so sick in my entire life," Dr. Piper recalled. "But I was very fortunate because my father happened to be a neighbor to a brilliant biologist who created what he coins resonant molecular signaling."
Her father had kept drops from this biologist, Dr. McMichael, stored safely away. When Dr. Piper fell ill, her father offered them as an option.
"My dad said, he assured me, 'No, Dr. McMichael is like you and it's natural and it works with your body and there's no chemicals in it.' I said, 'Okay, Dad. Overnight me these drops.'"
The results were remarkable. "By the end of the first day, my fever that was 104 for a couple of days was gone. And by the end of the second day, I was starting to get the first signs of taste and smell coming back. It wasn't fully back yet, but it was miraculous."
Dr. Piper had other plans for her life and career. She wasn't looking to start a wellness company. But a simple visit to thank the man who created the drops that helped her recover led to an unexpected question that changed everything.
"I went up to meet him. I went up to see my dad and meet Dr. McMichael. And I just said, 'Dad, bring me by to see him. I want to thank him for saving my life and I want him to put a face with my name,'" Dr. Piper explained.
What happened next surprised even her: "And then before I knew it, out of my mouth was, why doesn't everybody have this? And how can I help you bring it to the world?"
That spontaneous question launched a company. But Dr. Piper knew she couldn't do it alone.
During her very first call with Dr. McMichael's business partners, Dr. Piper spent most of the conversation talking about someone else entirely—her close friend Wendy Cohen Osborne.
"Because of her past business experience, there wouldn't have been anybody else that I felt strongly enough about that I could partner with and that could really do what needed to be done," Dr. Piper said. "And I just prayed that she would see my vision."
Osborne brought critical expertise to the partnership. Her background in legal and healthcare, combined with experience providing medication alternatives to medical providers, made her uniquely qualified to help bring bioenergetic products to market.
But credentials alone didn't seal the partnership. Osborne had her own experience with the products during the pandemic.
"Because she had her own experience with the product during the pandemic, she knew it worked and she saw the vision and here we are," Dr. Piper explained.
Starting any business carries risk. But launching a wellness company offering alternatives during a global health crisis required extraordinary courage and conviction.
Osborne reflected on the decision: "When I saw what these drops did and to really see where the world was at at that time and to know that we had something that was safe and non-toxic, drug-free and simple to use, safe for everybody and it's not dependent on size or weight."
The stakes felt enormous. "Here, the entire world was in a panic. They were being forced essentially to take the vaccination or to think that there was only one choice that they had," Osborne recalled. "And this was a really bold move that we really had to decide were we going to do this. We didn't know the pushback. We didn't know what was going to happen, but we just knew we had something special."
Their complementary backgrounds gave them the confidence to move forward. "With what each of us came from, with our backgrounds and everything that we've each done individually, we knew that we were going to be together even stronger and better. So, why not?"
What the founders initially thought would be a single-product company quickly revealed itself to be something much larger. The scientific foundation beneath their business extended far deeper than they originally understood.
"What we didn't know at the time was that Dr. McMichael had over 200 patents," Dr. Piper shared. "So we thought we were just coming to market with one antiviral formula that worked with COVID, but it worked with multiple other viral conditions as well."
This discovery required rapid strategic decisions. "And so then we had to get very clear very quickly what we were going to launch the company with and what carrier we were going to use. We had to do some preliminary testing and really figure it out."
Several of Dr. McMichael's molecular formulas had already progressed through FDA clinical trials—some reaching phase two approval. This existing research provided a scientific foundation that few startup wellness companies can claim.
Brian Fitzpatrick, CEO of Qredible, emphasized why founder stories resonate so deeply with consumers seeking trustworthy wellness products.
"I always love the story behind the business because what keeps entrepreneurs going is the why, right? It's the reason. It's the reason that gets you up and empowers you both every day," Fitzpatrick observed.
In an industry plagued by faceless corporations making unverifiable claims, knowing that real people with real experiences stand behind a product creates a meaningful connection.
Dr. Piper and Osborne embody this principle. "We are really passionate about the research and about having that transparency and building trust," Dr. Piper said. "I mean, we're just two real people that are trying to make a difference in the world, offering people complementary and alternative forms of medicine."
The founders find ongoing motivation through customer experiences that mirror their own discovery.
"I think that's one of our most favorite parts of being the founders of this company because when we hear how our products are literally changing the lives of people, that's just what we love to hear," Osborne shared.
She offered a particularly moving example involving families with children on the autism spectrum: "When you hear how these drops change the lives of a family whose children or whose child is on the spectrum and that drop just enables that family to have a little more calm, a little more peace in their home. Those types of things affect everyone in the household."
As Osborne noted, "You can't have a test without a testimonial. And that's really what a testimonial is. So, in order for people to really have and be able to talk about their experiences, they have to try it. So, why not try something that's safe?"
The path from personal health crisis to wellness innovation ultimately comes down to a simple mission.
"Our mission is to really empower people as to understand the importance of what they put on and in their body," Osborne stated. "Our bodies are really meant to heal themselves. And so if you're putting things that are natural on your body and in your body, you're just enabling and you're helping your body to function at its ultimate that it should."
Dr. Piper offered her own guiding principle: "Make small incremental changes to be better today than you were yesterday. And there are alternatives. So when you look for them, you find them. But if you're not looking for them, you won't find them. So keep looking."
For consumers evaluating wellness brands, the founder's story offers valuable insight into company values and commitment. When that story begins with personal suffering, recovery, and a genuine desire to share that healing with others, it creates a foundation of trust that marketing alone cannot replicate.
Code Health's origin—rooted in Dr. Piper's COVID recovery, built on 40 years of scientific research, and strengthened by a partnership combining complementary expertise—demonstrates how authentic experiences can become the cornerstone of credible wellness companies.
Watch the full Qredible Live Broadcast episode "Claims to Clarity: How Data and Transparency Are Transforming Trust" featuring Dr. Lisa Piper and Wendy Cohen Osborne.
