Hair Length and Passing

[AshleeLC]

How important is hair growth to passing, as in its contributing to passing as female? Or is it just one of those things that helps and isnt really a big deal? Ive been wondering about this for a while now and I was wondering if longer hair can help me pass more easily, and as my hair grows slowly, Ive been considering buying some shampoos and conditioners like Main and Tail to help speed it up.

[kelly_aus]

My hair is shorter than yours.. And it's been a long time since I was misgendered.

No one thing is going to make you pass/not pass. And when it boils down to it, looks are only a part of passing.. Body language and confidence also play a big part, as do some other things..

[LittleEmily24]

I've been growing out my hair and right now its pretty short but still long enough that i can pass for androgynous if im all dressed up with make-up as well. However, before when my hair was like "lesbian" (and i say lesbian because it looked more like a butch woman cut rather than a short male cut because of how i would "try" to style it) short I wouldn't pass even joking, so i would have to wear a wig like the one in my profile pic. I don't have to wear one anymore, though the wig does make me more passable, I honestly have no issue being minimally passable for now.

right now its about mouth-length and I seem to be hit & miss when it comes to passing but its better than not passing at all xD

The relation between hair and passing depends on more than just your hair length, it has to do with your facial structure as well. Long hair kind of does things to your features that short hair cant. Honestly, your head hair can make a huge difference in the way your face looks regardless of gender. Back when i was male, a simple comb-over meant the difference between looking like a bum and looking like a business man even if i hadn't shaved.

Hell, even your EYEBROW hair can make a huge difference in your face. Honestly, since waxing my eyebrows to a more feminine style, I pass even better than before and I ditched the wig xD, sometimes less is more.

Also, that Main and Tail shampoo is all myth. I used it for a long time and it honestly made no difference in terms of length or growth, that's all just a marketing tool and has nothing more than a placebo effect. I mean it leaves your hair nice and soft and voluminous, but it doesn't speed growth. If you want your hair to grow faster, take fish oil supplements, hair/skin/nails supplements, or eat more salmon. All those things increase the speed at which your hair grows. But not drastically

[ath]

I've been growing out my hair and right now its pretty short but still long enough that i can pass for androgynous if im all dressed up with make-up as well. However, before when my hair was like "lesbian" (and i say lesbian because it looked more like a butch woman cut rather than a short male cut because of how i would "try" to style it) short I wouldn't pass even joking, so i would have to wear a wig like the one in my profile pic. I don't have to wear one anymore, though the wig does make me more passable, I honestly have no issue being minimally passable for now.

right now its about mouth-length and I seem to be hit & miss when it comes to passing but its better than not passing at all xD

The relation between hair and passing depends on more than just your hair length, it has to do with your facial structure as well. Long hair kind of does things to your features that short hair cant. Honestly, your head hair can make a huge difference in the way your face looks regardless of gender. Back when i was male, a simple comb-over meant the difference between looking like a bum and looking like a business man even if i hadn't shaved.

Hell, even your EYEBROW hair can make a huge difference in your face. Honestly, since waxing my eyebrows to a more feminine style, I pass even better than before and I ditched the wig xD, sometimes less is more.

Also, that Main and Tail shampoo is all myth. I used it for a long time and it honestly made no difference in terms of length or growth, that's all just a marketing tool and has nothing more than a placebo effect. I mean it leaves your hair nice and soft and voluminous, but it doesn't speed growth. If you want your hair to grow faster, take fish oil supplements, hair/skin/nails supplements, or eat more salmon All those things increase the speed at which your hair grows. But not drastically

Do you know what it is in salmon that aids hair growth? I'm curious because I have a drawer full of canned salmon I caught last summer, and some vac packed fillets left in the freezer. Is it just the fish oil in them?

[LittleEmily24]

Do you know what it is in salmon that aids hair growth? I'm curious because I have a drawer full of canned salmon I caught last summer, and some vac packed fillets left in the freezer. Is it just the fish oil in them?

The Omega-3 fatty acids in Salmon and other cold-water fish promotes hair growth, AND makes it shinier ^_^. Avocados too. I'm no scientist so I don't know exactly how xD but if you're someone who doesn't like fish or cant afford salmon (cuz its expensive as hell), you can just buy omega-3 supplement pills, or that flavored cod-fish oil thing

[ath]

The Omega-3 fatty acids in Salmon and other cold-water fish promotes hair growth, AND makes it shinier ^_^. Avocados too. I'm no scientist so I don't know exactly how xD but if you're someone who doesn't like fish or cant afford salmon (cuz its expensive as hell), you can just buy omega-3 supplement pills, or that flavored cod-fish oil thing

Do you know if it's just salmon or will any fish help? I've got a lot of halibut, lingcod and trout, too, on top of the salmon.

Personally I never buy fish, just try to stock up in the summer haha.

[mandonlym]

I think it really depends on the person and it's a combination of a bunch of factors, so it will fully depend on both your appearance and the way you handle yourself. I'd say it's easier to pass with long hair especially if you wear highly gendered clothing and makeup. My hair is past-shoulder length now but I wore it really short for three years or so post-op and passing wasn't a problem. People would sir me from behind and then apologize when I turned around. But I rarely wear makeup and have blonde eyebrows that aren't particularly prominent, so I haven't had the experience for years of being sir'd intentionally when I'm making an effort to look feminine.

[Seras]

Style > Length

My hair is mad long, has been since I was 15. Last time I got it cut was because I was going on holiday and could not swim properly. Didn't mean I got gendered female.

On the other hand when I am wanting to be presenting that way having my hair nice and clean and blow dried and voluminous and whatnot makes all the difference.

[Jenna Marie]

I'm sure it depends, like anything involving people... but I kept getting mistaken for a girl even pre-transition b/c I had long thick wavy hair.  It sure won't *hurt,* anyway!

[LittleEmily24]

Do you know if it's just salmon or will any fish help? I've got a lot of halibut, lingcod and trout, too, on top of the salmon.

Personally I never buy fish, just try to stock up in the summer haha.

Cold-water fish. Rainbow Trout is one. Halibut isn't a cold water fish though. Pretty much Lake/River/Pond fish, and very few marine fish are considered cold-water fish. Cold-Water fish contain more monounsaturates. To put it simply, animals in the cold have thicker layers of fat and fur to keep them warm. Fish fat is oily, so cold-water fish need more fat to keep them warm, which means cold-water fish have a higher concentration of omega-3 oil (fish fat) than warm water fish. Fish Oil = good for hair health in general, not just growth. It makes your hair stronger, shinier and easier to manage as well (aside from faster growth i mean)

[Hikari]

Mine has varied in length from waist to collarbone in length since I was about 13. The longer my hair is the more often I get ma'amed but...

That isn't saying you look more feminine or even pass more with longer hair, merely that *most* people don't actually bother to get a good look at you but just glance at you. I really don't think it does much for or against you in any setting where someone is paying more attention to you than at a cash register.

[FalseHybridPrincess]

Well I ll just answer for myself...

Having short hair would mean 0% passing chance for me...

[Allyda]

I used to always pass with long or short hair. I think alot of it depends on your facial structure and features. If you already have feminine features ie: small face, very thin wrists and arms, and long legs for your height coupled with hips and some breast development it's much easier to pass regardless of hair length. However, for the last 10+ years I've kept my straight black hair long -down past my shoulders to the middle of my back, and, hrt has helped it come in much thicker with alot of new growth. However for me it never mattered, short or long I have no trouble passing. And believe me, I'm not seeing what others are seeing I'll tell you that.

[Jodi.LP]

I think longer hair helps some girls look more feminine while it makes little difference for other girls

[Jennygirl]

Long hair styled the right way can help loads.

However long hair styled the wrong way (or not styled aka just all really long) will generally do the opposite.

Long hair can be a fashionable male thing as well

[Joanna Dark]

People would sir me from behind and then apologize when I turned around.

I have short hair, like lesbaina short down to my ears kind like Tegan from Tegan and Sara. People will say sir, I turn around, and it's all, sorry miss. I have short hair, havent been wearing akeup cause I lost most of it so it's just foundation blush and mascar and some line occasionally--wait that's makeup lol--but it's fairly low key. My clothes aren't highly gendered as it's still cold but in the summer I wear pretty femme stuff. Skinny jeans and tight small little form fitting tops with big open neck or scoop necks. But whne I try to pass as boy for this one clinic I go to I get odd looks, like blah what is that. But if I present female, which is what I normally do, I pass fine and so i think short hair poses no problems whatsoever. mannerisms and your face strucure or much bigger factors. You could have the longest prettiest hair in the world, but if you walk like a gorilla and your face structure isn't very female, you won't pass. Pretty does not equal passing and passing does not equal pretty.

[Jennygirl]

Sometimes though hair can do wonders for masculine bone structure.

For example, side bangs to tone down and frame a prominent browline... beautifully too in some cases.

[Allyda]

Or long hair can be used to cover up scars, as I sometimes use mine to do by styling a bit different. I know at some point though I'm going to need see a surgeon about these burn scars I have on the left side of my face. They're along my jawline just below and in front of my left ear. I've become more self concious about them since I've been on hrt.

[stephaniec]

I found that when I first went out in public in a nice dress with long hair styled  in a feminine way helps a lot with your confidence , especially doing bangs .

[Jill F]

I've had my hair long most of the time since about 1990, cutting it short in 1998 and again in 2001.   Sometimes I'd get ma'am-ed from behind, but never from the front.  Having long hair seems pretty far down the list of things that will get you read as female. 

Nobody ever read Sinead O'Connor as male either.

Seriously, mannerisms and voice are much more important and they don't have to take nearly as long to develop.