Hypnosis seminar seeks to help OU students, staff quit smoking
A seminar that uses hypnosis to help smokers kick the habit was held Saturday in Corridor B of the Thurman J. White Forum Building on OU’s Norman campus.
The Stop Smoking Seminar was led by husband-and-wife team Charles and Kelly Bender. Charles Bender, a hypnotist and life coach, uses hypnosis to eliminate the desire attendees have for cigarettes in everyday life situations, according to the Stop Smoking Seminar website. He said hypnosis can help stop cravings for other tobacco products as well.
The two-hour seminar cost participants $49.95, he said. The private sessions he normally offers range from $250 to $340, but he said he wanted to make the seminar affordable for everyone, especially since it was geared toward OU students, faculty and staff.
He said he plans to continue offering seminars at OU throughout the year.
Bender said hypnosis seminars and recordings helped him quit smoking in 1998.
“My life has completely transformed since then,” he said. “I’m really fired up to help others quit.”
Hypnosis will only work if the person is willing, though, he said.
“No one can make you do something you don’t want to do with hypnosis,” he said. “You have to allow it to work, but once you do, the success rate is astronomical.”
He said around 80 percent of his clients are still tobacco-free 30 days after a session. Those who feel they still need reinforcement can attend the seminar again for free.
“When it comes to smoking cessation, I’m on a mission to help others quit,” he said.
Bender said he keeps in touch with all of his clients and often helps them reach other life goals.
“We help people get to the next level in what they want to accomplish in their life,” he said.
The Benders offer private counseling and hypnotherapy sessions through their Chrysalis Institute in Moore. The institute searches for the “latest psychological tools and techniques” to help clients with weight loss, anxiety, pain management and smoking, according to its website.
Those who don’t have time to attend private sessions can buy the Home Study Course, he said. The course includes everything a regular session would, but it is a recording instead of a face-to-face conversation.
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