Aw - thanks, Jack. My husband is 6'6" and it took me a while to understand that it wasn't all roses for him, either. Even though most men want to be tallish, nobody wants their height (or anything else about their body) to be the centerpiece of their existence. Our six kids are 6'5", 6'4", 6'1" (<-- his boys) and 6'0", 5'10" and 5'9" (<-- my girls.) It's rare, but when we're all together in public, we are a sight to behold!
I forwarded this piece to my son who is 6'5" and has never been fond of his height. He endured the burden of being the tallest kid in every class.
Despite how you felt about yourself, the Laura I recall from '78 was not only tall, but smart, funny, confident, feminine and stunningly gorgeous. It appears nothing has changed. Keep sharing, you're an excellent photo journalist.
This is fantastic - it is concise - not a wasted word, fascinating - I reached through wanting to see where it was going and then A wham - right to the heart - and the photo journalism added with the picture of you !!!! Bingo - you nailed this!!!!! Keep it up - you are on a roll!
Laura I too was a tall girl now 178cm and have decided to write a book on my experience and the impact it had on my life. I'd love to connect. I was one of the founder of Tall Girls Inc and was instrumental in pushing for the study that was done. And funnily enough, with that 'you'll be too tall to get married' line that Wettenhall said when I was 7, lead to a life of not feeling worthy and I married my now ex-husband of 5'4 - who as it would have it had been taken to Wettenhall at the Royal Childrens for being too short. It was suggested he have injections in his knees to increase his height but his parents walked out. I'm now on the path to write a book and tell my story and how it has impacted my life. I'd love to connect
Kate! I love that you're working on a book about this! Which study did you push for? (Sorry, it's been a while since I wrote this and I may be missing something obvious.) Your story is one more piece of overwhelming evidence that gender height biases are like fluoride in public water systems. We've been drinking it for SO LONG we don't need anyone to tell us. We got the message long before we could articulate it. Are you in the UK?
Even though I wasn’t tall or heavy, I remember feeling like an oaf compared to the teeny, tiny prettier (in my mind then) girls. And now I have a grandson with a renal condition that will likely relegate him to being “short.” So interesting how our psyches are intertwined with size and comparison.
After reading Normal At Any Cost, I am more convinced than ever that gender height biases stem from a cultural narrative that has been passed down from one generation to another since the cave days. Another book quote:
"Like peahens who choose to mate only with those peacocks exhibiting the longest, most glorious tails, a prehistoric grandmother would have chosen a taller male in order to pass tall genes on to her offspring. This also helped assure that her sons would be desirable, so they would pass her genes along to future generations. According to other theories, when early humans roamed as hunter-gatherers a man may have preferred a shorter woman because she required less food, or because she sexually matured sooner, as short females tend to do."
It's just inconceivable to me that we haven't evolved past this.
Aw - thanks, Jack. My husband is 6'6" and it took me a while to understand that it wasn't all roses for him, either. Even though most men want to be tallish, nobody wants their height (or anything else about their body) to be the centerpiece of their existence. Our six kids are 6'5", 6'4", 6'1" (<-- his boys) and 6'0", 5'10" and 5'9" (<-- my girls.) It's rare, but when we're all together in public, we are a sight to behold!
I forwarded this piece to my son who is 6'5" and has never been fond of his height. He endured the burden of being the tallest kid in every class.
Despite how you felt about yourself, the Laura I recall from '78 was not only tall, but smart, funny, confident, feminine and stunningly gorgeous. It appears nothing has changed. Keep sharing, you're an excellent photo journalist.
This is fantastic - it is concise - not a wasted word, fascinating - I reached through wanting to see where it was going and then A wham - right to the heart - and the photo journalism added with the picture of you !!!! Bingo - you nailed this!!!!! Keep it up - you are on a roll!
Thanks, Jojo!!! I had to leave out a lot that I wanted to say, but it was already too long. Maybe I'll do another one on this topic soon.
I’m near Geelong and hour from Melbourne Australia. Oh don’t get me started on fluoride that damaged my teeth.
There was a study done from 1998 after a group of tall girls replied to a newspaper article featuring Janet Cregan Wood in reference to DES treatment.
There were 5 of us that started Tall Girls Inc to bring together the women who responded to the news article.
There were a few of us country girls that got ‘special’ examinations from Wettenhall but we weren’t able to press charges.
The study was more a ‘qualitative’ one as one of the researchers was threatened she’d never get funding again if it cover the ‘examinations’.
Yet another medical and legal system coverup.
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/7714783_Using_hormone_treatment_to_reduce_the_adult_height_of_tall_girls_Are_women_satisfied_with_the_decision_in_later_years
Laura I too was a tall girl now 178cm and have decided to write a book on my experience and the impact it had on my life. I'd love to connect. I was one of the founder of Tall Girls Inc and was instrumental in pushing for the study that was done. And funnily enough, with that 'you'll be too tall to get married' line that Wettenhall said when I was 7, lead to a life of not feeling worthy and I married my now ex-husband of 5'4 - who as it would have it had been taken to Wettenhall at the Royal Childrens for being too short. It was suggested he have injections in his knees to increase his height but his parents walked out. I'm now on the path to write a book and tell my story and how it has impacted my life. I'd love to connect
Kate! I love that you're working on a book about this! Which study did you push for? (Sorry, it's been a while since I wrote this and I may be missing something obvious.) Your story is one more piece of overwhelming evidence that gender height biases are like fluoride in public water systems. We've been drinking it for SO LONG we don't need anyone to tell us. We got the message long before we could articulate it. Are you in the UK?
Even though I wasn’t tall or heavy, I remember feeling like an oaf compared to the teeny, tiny prettier (in my mind then) girls. And now I have a grandson with a renal condition that will likely relegate him to being “short.” So interesting how our psyches are intertwined with size and comparison.
After reading Normal At Any Cost, I am more convinced than ever that gender height biases stem from a cultural narrative that has been passed down from one generation to another since the cave days. Another book quote:
"Like peahens who choose to mate only with those peacocks exhibiting the longest, most glorious tails, a prehistoric grandmother would have chosen a taller male in order to pass tall genes on to her offspring. This also helped assure that her sons would be desirable, so they would pass her genes along to future generations. According to other theories, when early humans roamed as hunter-gatherers a man may have preferred a shorter woman because she required less food, or because she sexually matured sooner, as short females tend to do."
It's just inconceivable to me that we haven't evolved past this.