Our Constellation of Support

“Windhorse refers to a mythic horse that symbolizes a person’s internal strength to uplift oneself. It is literally an energy in the body and mind, which can be aroused in the service of healing an illness.”
— Edward M. Podvoll, MD (Recovering Sanity, p. 224)

About Windhorse Integrative Mental Health

  • Five men sitting on the front steps of a house, playing guitars, and talking among themselves on a sunny day.

    1. Therapeutic Household

    Clients begin at our fully furnished Still Point house for a calm, supported start, then transition to a Windhorse home in the community with a carefully selected housemate who provides steady, everyday support as independence grows.

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  • Woman with curly hair sitting on a sofa in a room with brick walls and a window, gesturing with her hand as she talks.

    2. Windhorse Clinical Team

    Clients are supported by an individually designed team of clinicians who work together to build meaningful therapeutic relationships, offer steady, consistent care, and thoughtfully respond to each person’s changing needs over time.

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  • Three people gardening in a colorful flower garden with a red church in the background on a sunny day.

    3. Community Integration

    Clients are supported in building meaningful connections beyond the program, engaging in local activities and relationships as a natural, steady part of everyday life and the healing journey.

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Our Constellation of Support

A hierarchical diagram displaying the different groups involved in a client-centered program, with concentric circles labeled from the innermost to outermost: Client, Clinical Team, Windhorse Community, Larger Regional Community. The diagram includes various bullet point lists of activities and roles associated with each group, such as client details, team members, and community activities.
A house outline with a geometric flower design inside.

Therapeutic Household

  • Our approach, known as Environmental Therapy recognize how environments impact us on every level—mentally, physically, spiritually and emotionally. While clients spend time outdoors, ‘environmental’ doesn’t necessarily mean being in the natural world. We value the importance of every environment and every aspect of daily life. This includes the household, the local community, the grocery store, the coffee shop—wherever we find ourselves throughout the day. In addition to paying attention to physical environments, we recognize the power and influence of interpersonal environments such as friendships or the relationship between parent and child. Over time, we work with each environment to support its unique healing qualities. Creating and nurturing healing environments make it possible for clients to draw on their own inner strength and create a life worth living.

  • Most of our clients begin their journey at Windhorse at our fully-furnished Still Point house. As suggested by the name, Still Point is designed to elicit a quiet mind and relaxed body. Here, basic household tasks such as shopping, cooking, and cleaning are taken care of by the Still Point house manager, allowing clients time and space to orient themselves to new surroundings. Still Point is the ideal, soft landing for new clients to begin their journey with Windhorse and grow accustomed to the program. A typical length of stay at Still Point is 4 – 8 weeks. 

    After Still Point, clients move into a Windhorse-leased two-bedroom apartment or home in the community with a therapeutic housemate, who becomes part of their team. Housemates are intentionally not clinicians, but rather healthy and grounded individuals, thoughtfully selected based on client need and shared interests, to offer support and a stable home presence through the duration of treatment. Together, client and housemate share in household tasks and activities, engaging with each other in the same way friendly roommates would. By joining the client’s team, a housemate also becomes an active member of the treatment program, offering ongoing support and insight when needed.

Clinical Team

  • A woman and a man walking and talking outdoors on a dirt path surrounded by trees and bushes.

    Healing Through Relationships

    We work with people in teams to create a tailored approach for each individual but the therapeutic relationship is the foundation of the Windhorse approach. By offering genuine relationship, we invite people to relax into who they are authentically and to reconnect gradually to the world around them. These connections can offer a much-needed bridge to others and potentially heal the devastating loneliness that afflicts so many people. The team can become like respectful friends, who also have a therapeutic role. Instead of “I’m well, you’re sick and I’m going to fix you,” there’s a sense that “we are in this together.” This intimacy of mutual caring fosters bonds of human kinship similar to an extended family.

  • Two men in a modern white kitchen having a conversation; one standing next to the counter, the other sitting on a stool at the kitchen island.

    Basic Attendance – The Essence

    Basic Attendance is the heart of our approach and threads itself throughout every aspect of our work. An application of Contemplative Psychology and a Windhorse-coined term, it’s a compassionate, human-to-human way of being with another person. Deceptively simple, it’s “basic” because it includes activities in everyday life—from doing the dishes, to hiking, to having dinner and seeing a movie. Sharing time in this way offers companionship, moral support, and a bridge to feeling more at home in the wider world. “Attendance” describes a present and open awareness—a mindfulness—to whatever arises in oneself, in our relationships, and in the environment. Paying attention in this way invites the other person to be more present and fosters connection.

A minimalist line drawing of two hands holding a lotus flower against a black background.

  • Basic Attendance is offered in shifts and can provide concrete help or simple companionship as the client faces tasks that may feel intimidating or even overwhelming. Routine occurrences like shopping for groceries become opportunities to connect and learn. Preferred activities that the client might typically do alone can be shared and enjoyed with a companion.  Shifts are flexible and collaborative, shaped by the client’s needs and interests and the unique chemistry of the two people involved.

    • Neighborhood-based living with a therapeutic housemate

    • Over 40 hours each week of one-on-one clinical/relational support

    • Individually designed teams that respond to a client’s changing needs

    • A therapeutic community with an abundance of gatherings and groups

    • Daily Group Activities (art, hiking, sports, movies)

    • Holiday Gatherings

    • Group Potlucks

    • Poetry and Musical Performances

    • Client

    • Team Leader

    • Team Counselors

    • Basic Attenders

    • Peer Counselors

    • Wellness Nurse

    • Therapeutic Housemate

    • Intensive Psychotherapist

    • Integrative Psychiatrist

    • Client Family

    • Restaurants

    • Libraries and Bookstores

    • Local Parks and Hiking

    • Volunteering

    • Employment

    • Colleges and Universities

    • Gym and Yoga Studios

Diagram with a central leaf icon connected to five person icons around it in a circular pattern, representing a network or community.

Community Integration

  • Four people are gathered at a produce stand selling figs and Italian plums at an outdoor market. The vendor is explaining the fruit to three customers, one man and two women, with a man holding a cup and gesturing.

    Windhorse: A Therapeutic Community

    At Windhorse, we think of each team as a small community. Beyond that, each team is part of our larger therapeutic community. We regularly offer groups and social events where clients and staff alike can connect and get to know one another. Examples of these may include music group, game night, pizza and movie night, volunteering, hiking group, potlucks and improv club. Unlike at other programs, all of our groups and social events are purely voluntary, allowing clients the space to decide what appeals most to them during their recovery process.

  • People talking in a garden with flowering plants and trees on a sunny day.

    The Power of Community Integration

    Recovery does not happen in isolation. Community involvement and integration are distinct elements of our approach, as they are a pivotal part of a person’s path toward healing and wellness. This is why our clients live in the heart of the town rather in an isolated residential facility. Through a community-integrated model, our clients have the opportunity to frequently explore what the local area has to offer, such as restaurants, shops, nature, volunteer opportunities, university, and recreational activities. Our intention is to encourage clients to explore the surrounding region so that roots may be established and connections made on their healing journey.