In the mid-90s, Mariel Pastor made the more-obvious-than-it-seems progression from entertainment industry executive to mental health therapist—a move she’s never regretted.

 

Based in Portland, OR, Mariel is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist and in-demand international Lead Trainer for Internal Family Systems (IFS) therapy, where she has worked directly with and alongside its founder, Richard Schwartz, PhD. With over 25 years in private practice, Mariel is known for her attuned sensitivity when presenting IFS, using a style that is creative, natural, and warm. As the principal author of the official IFS training manual, translated into eight languages, she has shaped the way thousands of therapists worldwide learn and practice this transformative healing modality.

 

After starting out as a professional singer herself and having worked many years with performers, storytellers and musicians, Mariel knows firsthand the vulnerable risks and rewards that come with the creative life. In Los Angeles she played a pivotal role in developing the careers of artists such as Sheryl Crow, Gin Blossoms, Aaron Neville, Sting, and others.

 

Bringing her professional life full circle, Mariel has merged her passion for IFS and the arts into Character Mapping. Her inspiration is fueled by a desire to reflexively elevate both the art and the artist–by mining the depths of a character and creating a transformative vehicle for the artist’s psychological health.  

​

"Stories hold real potential for growth and healing—and not only for the audience. As a fan, I've felt uneasy, and almost parasitic, to know that I was enjoying a performance when the actor, writer, or director was negatively impacted by the experience. As an IFS therapist, I knew it didn't have to be that way. I saw a bridge between the storyteller's relationship to characters, to craft and, ultimately, to their core Self."

​

​Read more about Character Mapping's origin story here. ​