What does one do about height?

[TheAwesomePrussia]

I'm 20 years old and I'm 5'0".
5'2" with insoles. And 5'6-7" when I cosplay. I wear 6-7" stacks when I cosplay, and there I get away with it, could be 5'8-9" in said stacks, but haven't tried wearing them with my insoles.

But even at 5'2", I still feel that my height is currently the only (physical) thing that keeps me from passing 100%.
What can I do about it? Is there any slim chance that I've still got some potential growing? And what do other shorter guys do about it?

[~RoadToTrista~]

They laugh at it. Trust me, of all things that keep you from passing height isn't one of them.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

Then I guess I'll find out when I get to campus. I'm currently stuck in my small (maybe 600-700 people population) town where I grew up. And if people don't just keep thinking of me as the "girl" they knew from elementary/middle/highschool, my parents kill any chances I have at passing when they fail to use proper pronouns. =A=

[riccirules]

Eh, I'm only 5 feet tall as well.
The people who know me as male, know me as a tiny male.

[Sharky]

You may get lucky and grow, but I wouldn't bet on it. I'm 5'5 and I hate it. I plan on getting some nice lifts but im going to wait until I've been on T for a few months and let my feet grow.  I suggest getting bigger, lift and eat. Increasing your mass will make people think you're bigger than you are.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

Yea. I passed in Germany, and for the most part I pass with strangers (as long as my mom isn't around, she almost refuses to call me a he). But I've only been "out" for just over a month. So those that know me as male, are those that know me, really well. I don't really encounter that many strangers. Which kind of sucks, especially when I'm at the McDonald's where I used to work at and have to use the restroom. I get awkward stares from all my former coworkers.

I do lift, when possible. Right now it's not. But when I get back to campus, I'll get back to regularly using the weight room. Until then, I do a lot of general exercises (push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, etc.) and I use my ab lounge and pull up bar.

[Alainaluvsu]

You may get lucky and grow, but I wouldn't bet on it. I'm 5'5 and I hate it. I plan on getting some nice lifts but im going to wait until I've been on T for a few months and let my feet grow.  I suggest getting bigger, lift and eat. Increasing your mass will make people think you're bigger than you are.

I'm 5'5" and pass as a guy

Too bad I don't wanna

BTW, sorry but I clicked the wrong forum, and read the topic thinking for some reason that this was the "all" transsexuals board.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

BTW, sorry but I clicked the wrong forum, and read the topic thinking for some reason that this was the "all" transsexuals board.

It's cool. I think getting a variety of opinions from the entire gender spectrum makes it more informative and more...well, accurate. So thanks!

[noxdraconis]

I am not much taller or older than you, TheAwesomePrussia.  Height never prevented me from passing, even pre-T.  I get teased a bit about it sometimes, or sometimes people think I am younger than I really am, but they never question whether I am male because of it.  Yeah, being this short can be difficult (reaching things, finding a date shorter than you, having to shorten your pants always), but there are cis-men that are just as short and nobody takes them as less male for it either.  I really do not do much about my height, and there is not much you can do about it.  I find the best thing is to dress in a way that does not emphasize my lack of height.  If you do not bring attention to it, you might find people will not notice it so much.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

I suppose it's just that a lot of my friends poke at me about it. I pretty much just roll with it, but sometimes it does piss me off. And I've seen a few threads on here claiming that someone may not pass because of height. Again, looking at it now, I think it's more where I am than what I look like. I'm pretty confident in my ability to pass once I get back on campus and out of my small hometown.

I won't lie. I have a Napoleon-complex. I'm short, and I make up for it by being an active leader (I'm studying to be a politician), but sometimes my height just pisses me off more than other times. B/

[TheAwesomePrussia]

I've looked into getting some shoes and boots that are made in such a way that they conceal their own height. But they're pretty pricey, around $70-90 or so. ^^;
For now, I just wear 2" insoles that I got from the same people that made my 3-in-1 packer.

[Epi]

I've looked into getting some shoes and boots that are made in such a way that they conceal their own height. But they're pretty pricey, around $70-90 or so. ^^;
For now, I just wear 2" insoles that I got from the same people that made my 3-in-1 packer.

Most elevator shoes (or boots) would run $80-$160 new, before taxes and shipping.

Does those 2" insoles cause you any ankle pain?

[TheAwesomePrussia]

Not really. I've worn much more uncomfortable things for the sake of cosplay (8" stiletto heels with black full-body paint, slit red contacts, and 2" long sharp nails for a demon cosplay [add that to the fact that I didn't have a binder yet, so I was wearing ace wrap]). And as I said, for cosplay I wear 6-7" stack combat boots.
Two inches is nothing. Actually, they're rather cushy.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

Yea. I get it from my gf and my younger brother, as well as my mother (even though she's shorter than me). But sometimes I get it from people I've just met at a con, or someone mentions my boots during an "Ask a Nation" panel when I'm supposed to be in character, which pisses me off because "in character" I'm wearing normal boots. So it's just, bothersome really.

[bojangles]

Height never prevented me from passing, even pre-T.

Ditto that.
A short guy is still a guy.

I was standing in line behind a dude who had some reason to be there awhile. At first, all I saw was dude in a yellow shirt.
Eventually, I realized that I towered over both him and the cashier. Only even noticed because there was enough time for it.
I'm 5'5 when I stand up straight.

I know plenty of guys my height or shorter, so it's not a big concern.

[Hayzer12]

Yeah, I see 5 nothin guys all the time at school man

Don't worry about it. I don't know what you're feeling and I'm not sure if it's part of your dysphoria(I'm not going through it. I got lucky. I'm 5'9) but as said above, a short guy is still a guy. I see short guys all the time and my friends have dads that are about 5'4 - 5'6 - so I think you're ok.

[Ratchet]

Best Remedy for Height consciousness? Get used to it. Learn to joke about it. Love yourself, even your height. Sure, it sucks to be short and pass for your age. As most people think you're younger (not less of a male) when you're a shorter guy. But I know PLENTY of guys that are my height or only a couple inches taller or shorter than me. I'm super skinny, and I wear fitted clothes so it makes me seem taller. But, I have no problem being my height. I'm short, but I'm awesome. So whatever. Have confidence, and a girl taller than you will never notice. She'll just see the confidence.

[wallflower]

Im 5'2", I am MTF but lived until 18 hiding it and ironically it was the thing I hated the most back then! I constantly got made fun of for being short but even with long hair no one thought I was less male because of my height, so don't worry! (just grow a thick skin )

[mm]

Being short is more of a problem for you as you see yourself as being the shortest guy around you.  Once you get on campus are have students who don't know your history everything should go much better.  I find at my university those who do not know my history are all see me as one of the guys.

[TheAwesomePrussia]

Yea. I start to feel a lot better about it after being with my gf. She's the kind of girl who's only "insensitive" to make a point. She knows I get riled when she makes fun of my height, but she also knows I get better at dealing with it.
I've found one thing when I hang out my other friend who's ftm. We short guys walk faster than everyone else. 8I Wonder why that is?
I guess it's one of those things that tends to bother me after the facts more than anything else.
And it might be part of my dysphoria. I kind of got lucky in other respects. Mid-level voice (though it could be better), fairly masculine facial features (if not masculine than neutral), high hairline, wide shoulders, thick leg muscles, and an extremely small chest. So it may just be that it's one of the few things I find about myself that I'm uncomfortable with. especially since both my brothers are a head taller than me. Only other thing I dislike about my physical features is my back end (but my gf likes it, so I'm a little more comfortable with it) and the things no one else can see.