Local man makes living out of getting beaten up

ISTANBUL

A Turkish man in Istanbul has been making a living out of getting beaten up for 11 years, “helping” those who want to “relieve stress.”

Hasan Rıza Günay set up his own business in 2010, inspired by Turkish comedy legend Kemal Sunal’s iconic movie “Şark Bülbülü” (Eastern Nightingale).

Just like a character in the movie, he started getting beaten up for money by those who were bored, angry at their boss, or just wanted to relieve stress.

Getting his “Stress Coach” brand patented with the Turkish Patent Institute, Günay invented this career after his application was approved in 2012.

Günay defines a stress coach as a person who provides professional support and organizes events for people in situations such as depression, panic attacks, distress, and nervous illnesses.

“This is a method based on shouting, yelling, screaming and reflecting negative thoughts and emotions in the subconscious to the stress coach,” he said, describing the profession he does.

Noting that his sessions last 10-15 minutes, Günay said he hosts a maximum of two to four customers a day.

Before he gets beaten up, Günay makes his customers sign a document stating that he does this on his own will, so that the customer can relieve stress.

Günay said that 70 percent of his customers are women, noting women had heavier burden to carry and they had more problems in their daily life.

The stress coach emphasizes that he eats two meals a day and pays attention to his sleep.