Oh, ouch, CCN. Your strategy for dealing with crying would be a disaster for my DS10. If your son truly can't help it, as mine can't, it doesn't really seem fair to get a punishment. Plus, aren't sensitive men what women want? Of course every family and situation is different, so I don't know what happens in your house.
My son cries easily, too. (My husband is an admitted crier and cries at every emotional movie, so it's in the genes in addition to being one of my son's sensitivites.) We have talked to my son after the fact and ask him why his emotions were so strong and he says, "I think that's just the way I am." It is getting better over the years, though.
He hasn't faced bullying. I think a lot of boys still cry at this age. But my son doesn't cry at school-- he avoids frustrating situations which might lead to crying. That's what we've taught him, and what he naturally does. He's involved with an extremely rigorous sport and it's not uncommon for the boys to cry when the going gets tough. Their coach just ignores it and the boys don't think anything about it.
Our advice to our son is to take deep breaths, walk away or think about something else for a while. We also remind him that he can't control other people, he can only control his behavior, and that seems to help.
