Go Tokyo Your Experience
On September 18, 2024, Yoshikawa Renmin, a former officer in Japan’s Self-Defense Forces, who once excelled academically at the Defense Medical College, made headlines for transitioning to the adult film industry. Despite earning scholarships and performing well during her studies, she faced severe workplace bullying after joining the Self-Defense Forces hospital, which eventually led to her developing a mental illness. To raise the compensation needed to leave the forces, she resorted to prostitution for two years before successfully resigning from her position. Afterward, she transitioned from prostitution to becoming an AV actress and has now become the junior to AV star Sora Aoi.
Yoshikawa Renmin, now 27 years old, was admitted to the Nursing Department of the Defense Medical College in 2015 with outstanding grades.
She explained that her grandmother was a nurse, which inspired her to pursue the same career from a young age. In addition, due to her family’s poor financial situation, she aimed to gain independence as soon as possible, which led her to apply for the fully residential Defense Medical College.
During her time at the college, Yoshikawa performed excellently, earning scholarships and exemptions from tuition and fees, allowing her to enjoy a comfortable student life. However, after graduation, she applied to work at the Central Self-Defense Forces Hospital in Tokyo but was instead assigned to the Fukuoka Self-Defense Forces Hospital in Kyushu. Once in Fukuoka, the increasing work pressure began to wear her down.
In addition to her daily duties, she had to handle various reports and faced workplace bullying, ultimately leading her to resign in her second year as a nurse. However, due to the conditions of the scholarships and tuition waivers she had received, she was required to serve a full six years in the Self-Defense Forces or repay 4 million yen in tuition fees.
To pay off this debt, Yoshikawa ultimately turned to prostitution and was able to earn enough money to settle her debt and leave the forces within two years. She explained that after living in the oppressive environment of the Self-Defense Forces, the work in her new line of work felt refreshing, even calling it her “salvation.” She expressed that seeing her clients’ satisfied expressions and being requested again by repeat customers gave her a strong sense of accomplishment, and she did not feel that she had turned to prostitution out of financial necessity.
After leaving the forces, she continued working at a Fukuoka sex establishment until she was scouted by a major Tokyo agency, successfully transitioning into an AV actress and becoming a junior to renowned AV star Sora Aoi.