Advice from fellow dudes?

[Percival]

So... since I've come out, I've found it very hard to pass. My friends have told me I've trained my voice to be passable (I have a naturally deepish voice, Pre-T... UK waiting times are dreadful!) and they've also said I look quite masculine, which is always a massive confidence booster.

But I have a glaring problem that I cannot fix with any hormones, surgery etc - I'm 4'10. I feel like I'm... never going to pass? Or that... I don't know, not look silly... I'm not too sure how to phrase it. But it sort of makes me feel like somewhat of an imposter. That matched with my wide hips (and hip dips, ugh), I feel like I just won't ever pass. I'm currently trying to diet as I'm 156lb, so I'm quite chunky, but I have quite a naturally curvy body as it is.

Any tips for passing? I just want to look good in suits, man... 

(I hope this is in the right topic thread!)

[Northern Star Girl]

Yes Percival, you are on the correct topic thread and the Subject Line that you wrote will certainly get the attention of the many other "fellow dudes" that are on Susan's Place.   
It's very late here in the USA so you may not get a lot of responses for another 8 or 9 hours....
Again, Welcome to Susan's Place.
Danielle

[Ryuichi13]

I have no idea how old you are, so I'll answer this as if you're past "first puberty."

Honestly, it shouldn't be a "height contest," its all about attitude!  If you're confident with yourself, you come across as more male.  And I don't mean like someone with "short person's syndrome," where every time someone says something, you want to fight them.  I mean, self-confident in yourself and your actions.  Trust me, you're not an impostor, simply a short man.  There are plenty of short men, both celebrities and in history.  Google is your friend in case you wish to look any up.       

Try wearing clothes one size larger than you would otherwise wear.  I mean, no tight, curve-hugging shirts.  Ones that hang a little baggy will hide your curves.  I had a similar problem with curves when I was pre-T, a freakin' curvy body.    Since I went on T, I seemed to have lost much of my curves, especially with the spare tire I now have!  (I need to work on getting rid of it!)

Suits can be custom-fit to your body.  Tell the tailor that you want it to fit like a man, and any one worth their salt will do just that.  If not, keep looking.  Also , get one that's a little large so it can be taken in properly. 

These are what I can think of off the top of my head.  Hope it helps!

Later, bro! 

Ryuichi 

[Dena]

Gus Grissom was the shortest astronaut in the Mercury program at 5.5. He was a part of the team that worked on the design of the Gemini  capsule and the other astronauts name the capsule the "Gus Mobile" because it was designed to Gus's dimensions making it difficult for the other astronauts to fit into it before some changes were made. Remember that fighter aircraft is designed for shorter pilot for two reasons. It's easer to find room for the pilot if they are smaller and a small person is better able the handle the g forces a fighter can produce. If your big like me, your stuck in something much bigger. 

In the male world, you earn the respect of others not by your height but by the knowledge in your head. You ask questions and learn what the problem is and only deliver a solution when you have one. Testosterone will do much to change your appearance but to earn the respect of others, you will demonstrate your mind through your actions. Clothing isn't that important in the male world but how you carry and present yourself is. Be confident in yourself and you will have no problem passing.

[Kylo]

Yeah, be superior in other areas to prove your worth. Wit, knowledge, ability and sociability go a long way in the world.

[BT04]

Cut carbs and restrict calories without negatively impacting your blood glucose to lose most of the hips. Fat "redistribution" is largely a misnomer - fat doesn't magically go from your butt to your belly while on T, it just reprograms the destination for future fat deposits. So you need to lose it first, and lowering your carb/sugar intake while also lowering your general calorie consumption via intermittent fasting or some other strategy is one of the most straightforward ways to do that. (Don't let skipping meals scare you. Faintness from not eating for only short periods of time is usually due to nothing more than metabolic inflexibility, which is actually a bad thing. Humans are supposed to be able to go through long fasting periods with few, if any, negative side effects, provided sufficient stores of energy, ie body fat, is available.)

As for height, I saw a guy walking down the street the other day who couldn't have been more than 5' even, and he exuded such genuine confidence that his height barely even registered. Trust me, body language is 90% of how tall others perceive you as being. At 5'8" I'm taller than my cis husband, but he's always "felt" bigger than even the men I've been with who were pushing 6 and a half feet.

[Pao]

At 5'2 I am a short guy too. It bugs me, I am not gunna lie. My work boots give me a little extra which I like. You can buy lift shoes or insoles. I adored my 6' platform buckleboots for clubbing, before they fell apart.

But even apart from all that, everyone above is right, it is about the way you carry yourself. And realizing that plenty of cis- super short dudes exist and no one ever questions their male-ness. They may give them ->-bleeped-<- about it (not condoning this), but they don't think "that is really a chick"

[Berserk]

So... since I've come out, I've found it very hard to pass. My friends have told me I've trained my voice to be passable (I have a naturally deepish voice, Pre-T... UK waiting times are dreadful!) and they've also said I look quite masculine, which is always a massive confidence booster.

But I have a glaring problem that I cannot fix with any hormones, surgery etc - I'm 4'10. I feel like I'm... never going to pass? Or that... I don't know, not look silly... I'm not too sure how to phrase it. But it sort of makes me feel like somewhat of an imposter. That matched with my wide hips (and hip dips, ugh), I feel like I just won't ever pass. I'm currently trying to diet as I'm 156lb, so I'm quite chunky, but I have quite a naturally curvy body as it is.

Any tips for passing? I just want to look good in suits, man... 

(I hope this is in the right topic thread!)

Yeah to be straight with you I can definitely see your height being a challenge without T. Not am insurmountable challenge, but you're absolutley right, very few cis dudes are under 5' tall. That said losing fat/weight will definitely do you favours. Despite differences in pelvic structure the "curviness" of the female-assigned shape is largely due to higher body fat around the hips and less muscle mass to counter it. If you get yourself at least into the sub 20% body fat range and then follow it with building some decent muscle mass on your lats, shoulders, traps and neck it will go a long way to helping you pass. Attitude is also a major factor in passing without T.  I've noticed that the trans guys that have most trouble passing withlut T tend to be more quiet/mousey demeanor, less athletic, have little experience interacting with other men, and more passive. Not that these are inherently feminine traits, but combined with being a trans guy they can cause you problems with being acknowledged as a guy among other guys.

[Sethie The Tenor]

4'10... I am so sorry man, I struggled with height dysphoria too, I am 5'1 and I am still growing, there is someone who works at my high school who is as tall as me, and he is a man, he doesn't look like a total outcast of society, I worried a lot about it, but I decided to focus on the positives, the height doesn't bother me as much anymore because I am a tenor and I am pre T and I have a masculine body, I won't blame you if you are thinking "Well at least you can say you're over 5'0!" because I get it, but not everyone is going to be really tall, and I am one of them, you will do just fine man.