I'm 24, just under 5', but nobody bothers to call me short. I have a 'young face' too so they just usually assume I'm about 12 or 13. Which, if I were, I wouldn't be short. haha. :-p
It has it's ups and and it's downs. I went trick-or-treating with my 10 year old brother and got free candy. Meanwhile my 16 year old cousin wouldn't get given the time of day for free. lol! But it's rather annoying the same 16 year old is offered the wine list and I have to display my ID about 5 different times. ayeayeaye. Anyway.
I'm 5'2". Not that short but I have short legs (26" inseam.) The problem I experience with that is that I like to ride motorcycles. I have a Harley Davidson ( for any guys out there thinking, Oh a Sportster, NO NOT A SPORTSTER. I ride a full size cruiser, FXDL.) Sorry, I get that everytime a guy finds out that I ride a Harley "oh you ride a Sportster" (the smallest Harley made.)It's unbelievable that they have to say it everytime to my face. The sportster is only 500 lbs and I'm 95lbs so they think I can't handle my 750lb bike that I ride. I also ride a sportbike, a Ducati. That bike is only 500lbs, but it has a seat height of 28". It's the lowest seat height I could find for a sportbike. When I first got it, I could get one tippy toe down and the other dangled. I ended up lowering it and with a major stretch I can tippy toe almost both sides. It would be nice to have motorcycles with decent power for people with shorter legs.
I am almost 30 and stand 5'05 (that's five foot half an inch, not five and a half feet). My mom is 4'10 1/2 and my dad is almost 6'0. My brother is around 5'7 I think. I have a son whom I conceived using a donor so I purposely picked a donor who was tall (6'0) but at 2 years my son's doctor said he will probably grow to be about 5'5 or 5'6. He's small now but is only 3 1/2.
Unfortunately while I am short I am not super thin so finding pants is always fun
Originally posted by missmygoofyb: ..You sound like a sweet person. ..So you want your son to be tall or does it matter??
well yes and no, of course I love my son no matter what. He could have green skin and purple hair and I would still think he is the greatest but as a parent I want the best for him and I want his life to be as obstacle free as possible. I don't care if he is tall or short per say but I think life would be less stressful for him if he is taller than I am, especially since he is a boy. It will make dating and things like that easier on him. This is not to say that I think being of short stature is a bad thing but I think it makes life easier if you are of average height
Originally posted by missmygoofyb: ..You sound like a sweet person. ..So you want your son to be tall or does it matter??
I want his life to be as obstacle free as possible. I don't care if he is tall or short per say but I think life would be less stressful for him if he is taller than I am, especially since he is a boy. It will make dating and things like that easier on him.
Being short is a real asset and things like dating etc are no more difficult believe me. It is all about personality and confidence. In my experience the fact that I have a form of dwarfism has been a huge advantage over my mates who were too shy in their teens to approach girls. This carries through to things like education and employment. Employers are keen to interview you as you stand out from the crowd and can offer so much. Read about my life here If you believe that being short is an obstacle to your son then he MAY perceive he is different and has problems and less opportunities. If, as in my parents' case, you treat them exactly the same as an average height person and encourage them to do the same things as everyone else, you learn your own limitations and get on with life.
It is interesting to get a guy's perspective on it. I do treat my son the way I would treat any child, tall or not. In fact I push him to do things for himself, but being that he is only 3 and incredibly stubborn, he fights me on everything. But none of this of course has anything to do with height and more to do with age (who ever said terrible 2's has never lived with a 3 year old). At this point I really don't know how tall he will end up being but no it does not matter to me, I will expect him to always be his best no matter what.
It's funny when he was an infant he was always smaller than the other babies his age, in fact he was below the 5th percentile in weight for a long time on the growth charts. It drove me crazy, not because he was small but because everyone around me was always giving me unwanted advice (bottle feed him, your breast milks too thin, he might have celiac's disease, hospitalize him, maybe he has cystic fibrosis, etc...) I kept trying to tell people, he's fine if there was something wrong he would let us know, he won't just quietly starve to death, he was such a happy baby, a happy small baby and I knew he was fine. Now at 3 1/2 he is almost the same size as the other kids, but I think he will always be smaller than a lot of kids his age. As I have said before, I love him to pieces and couldn't care less if he is big or small, what I want most for him is to be happy, healthy, and loved.
Okay I do have one question and anyone who wants can answer this. Do you think it is easier or harder to be either a dwarf or a person who is short but not a dwarf? I am not sure what the answer is and I would like to get other people's perspectives, especially males.
I'm 18 (well 17, but turning 18 in three days,heck yes!) and I'm 4'9", I'm not a dwarf, but my ENTIRE family is short. My grandma's are 4'7" and 5', my mom is 5'1", my dad 5'6" (short for a male) and my aunts are all under 5'3". My 20 year old sister is 4'8" and looks like she's about 10. I at least look closer to my age, though when I go out to eat I often get asked my age because I might get a 12 under discount (my sister especially gets this). At school I constantly get questions like, "are you a dwarf?", "hey, since you're under 4'11" you have to have a booster seat to drive don't you?", "you're in proportion so you must be a midget" , or the constant questioning of how tall I am. That doesn't bother me too much, but what's horrible is "AWWWW, you're so cute, you're so little!" in a voice you would talk to a three year old in. Or when people find out how short all my family members are they're like "wow, you're family is a family of midgets". Or the fact that I have insanely small feet and wear a 13 to 2 in children's shoes (six year olds have had bigger feet then me) and whenever I go shoe shopping it's so upsetting to have my friend all go get cute shoes aprropriate for our age and I'm stuck w/ a choice between Dora the Explorer or Barbie shoe. I love being short, but it's still frustrating going out and people questioning your age, shopping in general for clothes that actually fit and are age appropriate, or when total strangers are like "wow, you're short," as if by now I have NO IDEA that I'm shorter then most people. I got stuck with the nickname tinkerbell (not that I mind it, I definately love the nickname) because I'm blonde, small and super-energetic and people I just met have often said that I remind them of a pixie. Didn't mean for this to turn into a venting thing...which it sort-of has, haha, but my main point to all this was, yea I'm not a dwarf, but at 4'9" I constantly face the same challenges and similar ridicule (sometimes worse since people know I'm not short for medical reasons, most people with common sense wouldn't tease someone who's medically a dwarf about their height, but people who are just short get teased all the time). I constantly have trouble reaching things, (my homeroom teacher had to make sure I got a locker that I could reach the shelves), seeing above people in crowds (haha, I had to get a booster seat during my school's trip to Stratford to see over people's heads to see the plays), and constanly have to look up at everyone to hold a conversation. My family has not missed an episode of this show since all members can realate to what the Rollofs go through. The episode where Zach got his temps has even helped me with my driving. My parents were trying to figure out what to do because I have problems with seeing over the steering wheel, and reaching the gas/brake without being insanely close to the steering wheel, and I now have got a raised seat cusion and working on getting pedal extensions (they're expensive!) and we turned off the air bags since Amy mentioned the danger of having them on in the episode. Ok, I'm done ranting, but I do have a question...I'm a senior and that means prom. I've went to look for dresses and at every store I've went to we've asked if I could get the dresses altered and the answers always been no. All the dresses are way too long, and I was wondering if anyone knew of a store that sells formal dresses for dwarfs, or have any other suggestions regarding this?
Originally posted by tinkerbell1219: I'm a senior and that means prom. I've went to look for dresses and at every store I've went to we've asked if I could get the dresses altered and the answers always been no. All the dresses are way too long, and I was wondering if anyone knew of a store that sells formal dresses for dwarfs, or have any other suggestions regarding this?
Hey you all size is never a problem, and never forget that. My daughter is 4'10" and she is one heck of a girl. In fact her own daugther is currently going on 5'11', yea what a combination. Last year prior to my granddaughter (freshman in high school with a 4.0 average) losing some baby fat some asked her about her sister(her mother). I think that is why she lost her baby fat. But back on the subject. My 4'10" daughter gave birth to an almost 9 lb baby, not c-section. Graduated college with a 4.0, and currently holds a job in management that pays over 100 k a year. So size what does that have to do with who the person is. I myself have dated men from 5'2 to 6'4 with variouse weights(Im 5'3"). It has never been the size but the person inside. To me the Roloffs have a lot of Good inside.
Some people on this thread have mentioned clothes and I've often wondered about the clothes someone under say 4'6" would find out there. I'm 5'3" and while that's not particularly short, it is hard sometimes to find clothes that fit in length. I also wondered, with all of Matt's ventures like the products he markets to hotels, has he thought about trying to market clothes for shorter people? After all, we have "Big & Tall" stores. There should be something for those people who are shorter in stature.
They re-ran the Foose's the other day, she has a tailor/seamstress who comes to her home. They are very well off, though.
I'm curious as to why not have special sized clothese for people of shorter, small stature because not everyone can afford a tailor. Surely there are enough people out there who could benefit fashion made for smaller people.
I'm 60 years old, 4'10" tall. My size has always been a challenge. However my Mother always said I had a "Just as big as anybody attitude." My folks were short people. Papa was 5'4" & Mama was 5'2". I've always been a hard worker. Mama said I was a little pick-up truck trying to do the work of a Semi. I had four babies, all natural delivery. My little girl died due to complications of delivery. But I have 3 sons of which I'm intensly proud. Their Paternal Great Grandma was only 4'8" & one spunky gal. We enjoy and appreciate the program very much. I am widowed and work to support myself. I'm still a little old Pick-up truck doing the work of a semi. I enjoy the program and understand so much about the life of little people. Thanks, Ellen
I had to laugh when I saw in the intro of your program, Amy climbing the grocery shelves. I have done the same thing, although not a dwarf, only a 59 year old 4'10" person and getting shorter by the year. I totally enjoy you program and hope that you continue to let the masses know the realities of life for "short" people. I have been laughed at because I cannot touch the floor when sitting at a table and my shoe size is that of a child. Even petite clothes have to be shortened. That is why, in the past, my husbands were over 6'2" so they could reach the top cupboard. Keep up the wonderful and cheerful episodes.
I dunno Miss. I thought that not only is it a height "thing" but a genetics thing. If you are under a certain height AND have genetics for dwarfism, then you are a dwarf. Otherwise, you are just "short-statured". At least that is my understanding....
yeah, that sounds right. I was just going by what LPA said, but yeah, unless you have the gene, then you are just considered short statured. Thanks for stating that also.
How do you know if your a dwarf? I mean I don't think I am, well I just don't know. I'm short but I'm taller that 3 feet. I'm 4'10, but I'm 14 and I'll be 15 in 4 months. Is that close to normal for a 14 year old girl to be around that height??? I mean I understand that I'm a short person in generalbut still is that Close to normal??
I had to laugh when I saw in the intro of your program, Amy climbing the grocery shelves. I have done the same thing, although not a dwarf
Hey, I'm 5'3" and I have to stand on lower shelves to reach stuff on the top shelves at the grocery store. In my opinion, there should be sliding ladders on every aisle in stores so that people of any size and stature can reach the products they need if they are out of reach. It's very dangerous standing on the lower shelves, but we do what we have to do, I guess.
Originally posted by amberglass: How do you know if your a dwarf? I mean I don't think I am, well I just don't know. I'm short but I'm taller that 3 feet. I'm 4'10, but I'm 14 and I'll be 15 in 4 months. Is that close to normal for a 14 year old girl to be around that height??? I mean I understand that I'm a short person in generalbut still is that Close to normal??
That is kind of under height for a girl of your age. Have you talked to your family doctor about this yet?
Hello,eveningstarz,Fist of all, let me say how happy I am to have found this site. I am 5'0, and can so relate to what I have read. Any way' I just wanted to say, that I am soon to be 50 yrs., and therefore, I think I have a little experience at being small(i hate the word short).Trust me on this, let your personality, and love for others shine through,and people will see you, and not your height. I have lived my whole life, so far, relying on these very virtues, and , even though there are awkward times when I felt intimidated by (big people} I learned to just pretend that I wasn't, and no one ever knew that I was jello inside I always pulled it off, and after a while I really was confident in myself. I am now married to a man who is, not only ten years younger, and the sweetest, kindest man I know, he is also 6"5. Except your height and love yourself. You are young, have fun and don't worry about your body, or height. Take care.
quote:
Originally posted by eveningstarz_41: Yeah I'm 4'10-ish with the face of a 13 yr old and i just graduated from high school...people never believe me when they see me and i tell them...
the funny thing is my boyfriend is 6 ft...it's definitely gonna be interesting...
but i definitely love this show cause i can relate to it, even though im not a dwarf...one of my nicknames in hs was "Little Sarah"...i was the shortest person in the school up until senior year when someone shorter came in as a freshman, and even though i have 2 younger sibs, im gonna be the shortest one in my family. sometimes its frustrating but, partly(if not mostly)because of this show, i'm slowly learning to deal with it.
Because you are only 14 you may not be done growing, generally girls reach their adult height around the same time they get their first period but I do believe it is possible to still grow a little more after that. If you are really worried you could probably have your doctor take X-rays to see if you are done growing. Another thing you can do is find out how tall you were when you were 2 years old. Usually we end up being double our height that we were at age 2 give or take an inch or 2.
quote:
Originally posted by amberglass: How do you know if your a dwarf? I mean I don't think I am, well I just don't know. I'm short but I'm taller that 3 feet. I'm 4'10, but I'm 14 and I'll be 15 in 4 months. Is that close to normal for a 14 year old girl to be around that height??? I mean I understand that I'm a short person in generalbut still is that Close to normal??
Hello everyone! It's nice to know we aren't alone. I'm simply a small person, 5ft and about 92lbs. I always was smaller than everyone, and looked years younger. (You should see my first driver's license photo at 16, I look 10! It's hilarious.) My goal growing up, when I realized I'd always be small, was to reach 5ft and 90lbs so I'm happy! I'm also happy that these days, at (almost) 27, people finally think I look about 16, rather than 12. I tell them they are sweet for not noticing the fine lines/wrinkles! But boy do they get confused when I pull out a credit card, or tell them about my job! (I'm working on a PhD. No, I'm not a child genius. Yes I'm your teacher, not a freshman.)
Some people do stare, but I'm okay with that. I often glance at small people myself, then as I walk by, I realize they are the same size as me! Oops! Am I really that small?? No wonder people stare! I'm actually a big person trapped in a little body, so I constantly forget how small I look. But I find it has more advantages than disadvantages, and my friends quickly forget how small I am as well. And dating isn't a problem, though I seem to always like guys 6'3" and taller, lol! But it isn't for their height--they just happen to be tall. Now THAT gets some stares...
This is really a great thread. Just started watching the show a few weeks ago and think I am almost caught up!
I am 5'2" and my husband is 6'1". I have 2 kids and my oldest 11 going on 12. He is almost as tall as I am; but all of his friends are pretty much taller than me without heels (yikes - HA!). For all of my teenage/adult life I have been wearing platform heel shoes/sandals/boots - they never seem to go out of style for women and don't hurt my feet! Steve Madden has some of the most reasonable costing shoes that are 3 1/2 - 4 1/2 inch heels!!!
Anyhow - I have really enjoyed reading the board and have to laugh that there are so many of us out there with the same problems. I have to climb on counters, washing mashines, etc... to reach items in cabinets and I cannot tell you how many times I have done the 'Amy' climb up the grocery shelves to reach what I want. Most recently I was out at a bar for Happy Hour with some work friends and I was the only one that got carded - HA!
Thank you for sharing! Looking forward to the new season starting next week!!!
I'm pretty short too, and have a great relationship w/ the sewing machine! Suffered from spina bifida and had the most "beautiful" brace in my middle/early high school years.
Luckily (I think) I grew up in/with a family who never let that matter or an excuse for anything I wanted to try, even though I could never, and still can't, touch my toes...much to the frustration of that danged PE teacher in 8th grade.
Originally posted by silverdlfn: I dunno Miss. I thought that not only is it a height "thing" but a genetics thing. If you are under a certain height AND have genetics for dwarfism, then you are a dwarf. Otherwise, you are just "short-statured". At least that is my understanding....
a person can be a drawf for other reasons besides genetics. My friend's daughter had cancer at age 10 and although she is now 30, she never grew anymore. she is 4' 8"-as far as having "genetics" that is what you inherit from your parents and sometimes if something has not shown for several generations-you may have no idea what is in your family history. Amy is the only dwarf in her family that she grew up in-in other words,her parent's and siblings aren't dwarfs; although her son Zak inherited the same type of dwarfism she has.
as far as the 14 year old girl- amber, you could possibly be a dwarf-it is borderline "iffy" I guess as to whether you gorw anymore-I did not grow past 14,my youngest sister did not grow past age 12, but our oldest sister grew another inch after she married at 18.
Even though 4'9" is short, as you said,you are taller then most who are considered dwarfs-so I would not worry about it; except as the one gal said, at the grocery store for the top shelves; even if you are over 5 feet tall- unless you are at least 5'6" that top shelf is not that easy to get to!
I am 4'9". Found the perfect solution to buying pants. I was having to cut oof quite a bit of the hem even off petite short pants. The solution!!! Buy capris. They are a perfect length.
im not a dwarf but, im 16 who is 4' 6-7'' and i feel the same pressures as any other little person. And quite frankly...What is the problem with the cconstant name calling? I mean really. Ive been called everything in the book from towel rack, to shorty so I know what little people are facing and i believe its time to stand up on our stools and be heard!
I am 4'11", 31 years old. I am not a dwarf, just short. At first when I was younger it was hard, but I learned to adapted. I feel blessed to be who I am. I love being short. My husband is 6'0". As I grew older, I learned to love my height. Now a days, some people call me lit bit or mini me. It doesn't bother me. They are not trying to hurt me. They are my friends. I enjoy it, it makes me "me". I guess if someone meant it to be mean, I would probably be hurt at first, but that is thier problem (not mine). I think everyone is special and unique. That is what makes life great and fun.
I am 5'3", not very much shorter than the norm, but still vertically challenged. My mom is 4"10", and has to get her size 4 shoes in the children's section. Her mom, my gran, was only 4'9" or so. They always told me that I should be thankful for being tall (ha-ha.) I was raised thinking I was tall - imagine my surprise to find out that I'm not! I have stools in every room of my house! The funny thing is - my two sons are 6-footers! If they weren't so ornery, I could get them to get stuff off the high sheves for me. But you know teens; sometimes it's just not worth the effort.
I am 4 ft 9 and 32 years old. I understand all the challenges of being a dwarf and until i really started asking didnt know that it ran in my family. i look like im 20 something which i think is a good thing. I even get carded for lottery tickets. Hey makes me smile and embarrasses the clerk.
Hi Forgive me I just joined today so I don't know my way around just yet. I am a 4'9" 48 years of age with physical challenges. I was never diagnosed as having any form of Drawfisum. However I do have a considerable amout of difficulty reaching for objects that above my eye level. So I was wondering how I could obtain one of your step-stools. Thank You. [EMAIL]Little Tigar46@aol.com[/EMAIL]
i am 4' 6'' and i was wondering...AM I A DWARF? I mean my parents tell me all the time "If you were a dwarf, you would walk funny." Im 16 and im not so sure if its just a short stature thing or is it something else. For example, I havn't seen my cousin in like 2 yrs. and when i saw im last 2 yrs. ago, i was taller than him. But recently he just came down and he was almost a foot bigger than me! Is it a problem or am i just over reaticing
IM 15 AND IM 4 10 IM STILL GROWING BUT I HAVE LIVED WITH BEING MADE FUN OF ALL MY LIFE....BUT I HAVE GROWN TO LOVE IT. I RECENTLY WAS DIAGNOSED WITH TURNERS SYNDROM AND THEY PUT MY ON GROWTH HORMONES...I HAVE GROWN 3 INCHES IN 6 MONTHS ON THEM! ALL MY FRIENDS EVEN TELL ME THAT I KEEP GETTING TALLER THAT THEY DONT KNOW WHAT TO THINK NOW...LOL THEY ARE LIKE YOUR NOT GOING TO BY MY MINI ME ANY MORE! BECAUSE THAT IS WHAT THEY CALL ME..AND I JUST RECENTLY HAVE BECOME COMFORTABLE WITH MY HIGHT!! =] I LOVE THIS SHOW SO MUCH AND I THINK THAT JERREMY AND ZACH ARE BOTH ADORABLE! =]
I am fairly short as well. Due to diabetes, I stopped growing in the 5th grade, so I stand at a proud 5'1". People will usually joke and tell me I'm short, but I just tell 'em I'm not short, I'm vertically challenged. My 17 yr old sister is a foot taller than me, and my brother use to call me his my size barbie. I got the short genes of the family. Sometimes it would be nice to be taller, but there are far more things to worry about than that.
I got the nickname lit'l bit from a security guard at my old job. It stuck and well I use the nickname alot for the internet. Of course some people can be mean and call me names like smurfette and I'm like. "do I look like I'm blue?" I just usually ignore people like that. I'm not a dwarf, but that doesn't mean I don't have challenges to deal with everyday.
I was born with a blood & bone disease called TAR Syndrome and it causes shorter statrue. I'm 4'6" tall.[QUOTE]Originally posted by fitmum36: I JUST WANT TO SAY I LOVE THIS SHOW . I AM A 36 YEAR OLD WOMEN THAT STANDS 4 FT 10 INCHES TALL ALTHOUGH IM NOT A DWAF.
i dont know what to do i am 4'10 and i am thirteen years old but i am not a dwarf because i have long arms and i walk straight i dont know what to do because i am nervous if a am not going to grow
please replay
This message has been edited. Last edited by: problemguy,
I am a 16 year old girl. you probley have herd this many times but i am a big fan. and i know how it fills to be made fun of because of your size. On your show it sayed the the tallest you can be and still be called a little person is 4'9. i am close. i am 5'2. it may not seem that way to some other ppl. but it is to me. my friends joke about it. yes it hirts but i get over. i think back and giggle. ppl say it is a Disadvantage but i say it is a avantage i can get in small places that other ppl cant. so i just wanted to say that i may not be a lil person but i know how it is.
..You sound like a sweet person. 
I learned to just pretend that I wasn't, and no one ever knew that I was jello inside 
