Hidefumi Yoshida, a high school teacher, identifies himself as “namida sensei” (tearful teacher) has helped 50,000 people “cry” over the past seven years.

Very few Japanese “know how to cry”, but according to Hidefumi Yoshida, Japanese people cry easily at first. “It is said that crying in some Asian countries will be criticized for being weak, so this expression of emotions is not recommended in Japan,” said Yoshida.

This man tried to change this perception by educating people about the benefits of crying: a relaxing and anti-stress way.

“If you cry once a week, you can live a stress-free life. Crying is more effective than laughing or sleeping at relieving stress,” he said.

According to Yoshida, crying has great mental health benefits by stimulating parasympathetic nerve activity, slowing the heart rate, and calming the mind.

The harder it is to cry, the more comfortable you feel when you can cry. Even a small drop can do wonders for health and bring happiness.

Hidefumi Yoshida has been a crying teacher for almost 8 years. Photo: en24.news.

But tears alone is not enough. Hidefumi Yoshida said the type of tears that fall is also important. Tears that arise from brief emotional experiences like watching a drama or a romantic movie, watching a book or listening to a song are the best. Crying from sadness causes prolonged suffering and negative consequences.

He has pursued a career preaching the benefits of crying for more than seven years. However, this job only really succeeded in 2015, when Japan introduced the mandatory stress test program for companies with 50 or more employees. Since then, he has struggled to keep up with the “orders” of companies and other organizations. Hidefumi Yoshida gives a presentation, using his rui-katsu (tear-seeking technique) to help people relieve stress.

“I use movies, children’s books and letters to make everyone else. I show them movies with different themes, such as family, animals, athletes or nature. “Many people cry because the natural scenery is so beautiful and majestic”, he said.

One participant in the rui-katsu experience said that they were not sure if they could cry or not. “However, I was surprised when I was overwhelmed with emotions and cried non-stop. After that, I felt refreshed like a bath,” said the person.