The Roots of the Windhorse Approach: History & Principles

The founding of Windhorse in Boulder, Colorado, in 1981 was a seminal event in the field of clinical work with persons suffering with mental disorders. It developed to serve the needs of both mental health practitioners wanting a truly compassionate approach and the needs of those persons wanting to recover.

Windhorse is a whole-person process-theory of understanding, treatment, and recovery, which brings a unique perspective to the stages of mental disorders we experience daily in our work. We provide home and community-based treatment conducted in the person’s natural setting. The clinical work is conducted by a team of people who practice “basic attendance” with the client and with each other, to foster a healing environment.

We emphasize mindfulness which arouses our genuine presence and clarity in all aspects of the work. We believe that people can be empowered to grow through the process of recovery rather than simply resigning themselves to managing a life-long illness.

Our approach has philosophical roots in psychodynamic psychotherapy, contemplative wisdom traditions, and the therapeutic community movement. Over the last forty years the approach has evolved as a unique psychology, a clinical method, a therapeutic community, and a social movement. The approach has been adapted to in-home therapeutic care for any life-disrupting situation in which the person simply wants to stay at home. The approach has also been adapted to a variety of community programs, job-training, and supportive employment initiatives.

Windhorse is now practiced by an international community of nine treatment centers and by Mindful Works in the U.S. and Europe.