Hi,
Between 2 depression periods, please let my share my opinion on why I hate being tall.
I'm 197 cm tall, that's pretty huge. Since I spend a considerable amount of time on the net, of course I've been reading on this topic as well, with the following results: being tall is cool, because you get: more salary, more women, more children, better cardiovascular health (but with an increased chance of heart attacks, and such), and in overall more attention, and hmmm....some sort of respect.
Well, these studies I guess were made in the US, where they might apply, but I've been experiencing the opposite my whole life...
For instance I'm considering having a CAT scan- since a 20kg weight (a bar in the gym) has fallen on my head last week, and I'm concerned now
In addition, I inadvertently remembered how many times I've hit my head in my life because of my talless....ughhh. I might have suffered some permanent brain damage by now
The salaries are totally independent on how tall a person is, at least in Hungary, everywhere I go people look at me, like some sort of weirdo, all the transportation systems are uncomfortable to sit in, not to mention I have to spend way more money on food, and of curse buying new clothes is always one of the worst moments of my life..
I think just deviating from the average (let it be height, or anything else) has it's own costs on the particular individual, nut just in terms of money, but anything else (time, energy, ect.) I want to be of average height...

As this is a Japanese learner forum, I'd imagine your learning Japanese.. and either have been or will go or want to visit Japan.. let me tell you as a 190cm tall guy myself. Your in for a lot more of whacking your head on stuff in the future

It's second nature to duck everywhere I go now.. but when I first got here i got caught out a few times. Japan wasn't built for 6ft 3in people in mind I think.

oh and yeah.. I'm thin too.. finding stuff that fits my arm length while not being like a tent is extremely difficult. Damn you short people!!

I'm 6foot2. Not sure if that's considered tall but I'm almost always the tallest whenever I go out with people. Although I haven't been to Japan yet, I've had situations where I've bumped my head at random places at times.

I'm 5ft 10 (178cm). That's exactly average in the uk, but here in Taiwan I'm tall compared to most guys- and it's so great!

Definietly feel more manly and confident; it's a male trait, you should be proud of it! Enjoy the attention and remember all those negatives are pretty minor and will be totally outweighed by the positives ; you will get more women, and guys won't pick on you!

It could be alot worse, you could be short..

aphasiac Wrote:I'm 5ft 10 (178cm). That's exactly average in the uk, but here in Taiwan I'm tall compared to most guys- and it's so great!

Definietly feel more manly and confident; it's a male trait, you should be proud of it! Enjoy the attention and remember all those negatives are pretty minor and will be totally outweighed by the positives ; you will get more women, and guys won't pick on you!

It could be alot worse, you could be short..

agreed!

I'm 6'4". Just like any trait that makes you a little different from the norm, it is a very alienating experience. Buying clothing is a nightmare. And no, women don't throw themselves at you. At least not where I'm from.

Ye being tall sucks sometimes. Short people have the advantage on one thing, they usually have better backs. Don´t know if it´s because the seats are made to their size and support their back better, or if it´s because their body is more compact.
About the CAT scan, i wouldn´t get it, the human head is really strong, and if there was any damage, even if you could see it in the CAT scan, it´s not like you or anyone can do anything about it. But i doubt anything abnormal would show up.
Cheers

I measure in at just a hair under 6 ft/178~9cm. On the tall end of average/low end of tall height in the US. In Japan, definitely in the middle of the tall range. I've cracked my head on a few doorways in Japan. The worst was when I picked something up off the floor and stood up squarely into the top door jamb. I hit it hard enough it brought me to my knees and left me checking for bleeding from a split skull, giving me a headache for a couple of days.

Buying clothes, while not impossible, is difficult. If a shirt fits in the shoulders, the arms are going to be way too short, and chances are the waistline is going to be huge. And shoes... in Japan, I usually just have to start by asking what they have in a 28-ish cm shoe (size 10.5~11 US sizes, depending on the shoe) and then see if either of the 2 styles are anything I like.

I am 185, which is more than 10 cm taller than the average in my country. Because of this, since far ago I have got used to pay attention to my surroundings, half-unconsciously, in order to duck whenever it come the time to avoid bumps. Of course, I have got a few along the years but even average people get them too. I have suffered with clothes too, specially pants, as I am thin too. Pants long enough usually have a waistline too wide for me and no matter how I wear the belt, it just folds uncomfortably around my body... But I dont care really. I like to call the attention when surrounded by lower people and, once I have them tailored or mended a bit, my clothes look well in my body. If I could choose, I would be as tall as I am again.

I am 187cm and knocked myself out one night going to the bathroom due to the low doorways in my apartment. Other than the short doorways and difficulty buying clothes in Japan, I have never had any other issues with it, even at times wishing I was a little taller (I was the shortest player on my university basketball team)

Hey, being short can suck too, and I'm quite short.

For my high school graduation, it was decided that we'd walk in order of shortest to tallest, and I was actually first in line for the rehersal (luckily I was top ten in my class, so I got to walk in with the top ten for the actual graduation)

It makes picking up women waaaay harder in America. In Japan, on the other hand, it doesn't seem to make much of a difference.

In America, there's also basically no clothes made for short skinny men--aparently men there are either short and fat, tall and fat, or tall and skinny.

Tzadeck Wrote:Hey, being short can suck too, and I'm quite short.

For my high school graduation, it was decided that we'd walk in order of shortest to tallest, and I was actually first in line for the rehersal (luckily I was top ten in my class, so I got to walk in with the top ten for the actual graduation)

It makes picking up women waaaay harder in America. In Japan, on the other hand, it doesn't seem to make much of a difference.

In America, there's also basically no clothes made for short skinny men--aparently men there are either short and fat, tall and fat, or tall and skinny.

How tall are you?

fakewookie Wrote:How tall are you?

162 cm--about 5'4

Raschaverak is 35 cm taller than me, haha.

six8ten Wrote:I measure in at just a hair under 6 ft/178~9cm....

Btw, 6 ft is 182.88cm. 178~9cm is about 5'10".

I once had a colleague at work, who was, hold your breath everyone 2,47m tall! He was a real cool guy to chat with, although talking to him made it necessary, to step a few feet back to be able to look into his face. Else you would have gotten serious neck pain after a short while. *yuk*

Now, being tall in and on itself is not bad for health, as well as being a walking meter, so to say. Being tall and having marfan syndrom, or other genetic-deseases however, really can be serious problem. Many tall people have marfan syndrom, but not all tall people, keep that in mind. Not that you start worrying that you might have it!

So if you do exercises, eat healthy food, and having had no other serious health problems in the family, guarantees for a good, long and healthy life, even if you are tall. So don't start to worry about something that you might be sick or suffering brain-damage or whatever you are afraid you might have.

If being tall equals being cool? I don't know. In my opinion being tall means more space to suffer when being sick. In Germany i heard of a case of a tall young man, he was approximately 2,15m, who was not able getting any jobs. Just because he was too tall, even in a supermarket, they would not take him.

My ex-colleague is working for a big international company in Australia now. I don't know how the Aussies are thinking about tall people, but it will be the same as in this country - the person behind the tall stature is what counts, not how tall he is.

I'm 6'1", and I hate buying shorts. Never long enough.

vosmiura Wrote:

six8ten Wrote:I measure in at just a hair under 6 ft/178~9cm....

Btw, 6 ft is 182.88cm. 178~9cm is about 5'10".

Last time I was measured in inches I came in at 5'11 and 3/4 in. That was quite a few years ago. It's possible I've shrunk just slightly in the intervening years (20-ish?) between then and my last health check for Hokensho last year. Probably when I cracked my head that hard on the doorway.

Perhaps it's just that you're 182cm+ then? I only know cos I'm 181cm/5'11".

Nagareboshi Wrote:I once had a colleague at work, who was, hold your breath everyone 2,47m tall!

I think your number must be off. If he was 2.47m, that would make him the second tallest living person in the world--slightly shorter than Sultan Kosen, and slightly taller than Zhang Juncai.

Unless his name was Vikas Uppal? He was the only person to be around that height (officially recorded at 2.49m) recently , and he died 4 years ago. It could also have been Sultan Kosen, before he grew a few more cm.

Nagareboshi Wrote:My ex-colleague is working for a big international company in Australia now. I don't know how the Aussies are thinking about tall people, but it will be the same as in this country - the person behind the tall stature is what counts, not how tall he is.

I'm Australian and I'm tall (6'2" or ~184cm). As far as what Aussies think about it; if you are tall you are tall and that's about it. Doesn't really matter. Unless you are extreeemely tall, then you might have some nicknames that people have given to you.

And RE: the Marfan Syndrome. I wouldn't say that many tall people have Marfans - because it is a relatively uncommon genetic condition that also covers many other organ groups (cardiovascular, muscular, skeletal, optical). I would say, however, that many people with Marfans are tall.

Do yourself a favor and stay the hell away from Tokyo Metro lines. Seriously, if Tokyo Metro is the only way for you to get to someplace, go for a walk instead.

@Raschaverak Embrace your height, it's your trait. If this were medieval times, you would probably be an intimidating knight. (Or not, but I like to think positive or maybe is just that I am so hooked with Game of Thrones)

TheVinster Wrote:I'm 6'1", and I hate buying shorts. Never long enough.

Hotpants

I'm 183cm. Tall but averagely tall.

I think height is another one of those things where it's easiest to be slightly above average but not too much of an outlier. Being above average is a definitely an advantage until it starts making you a novelty or isolates you in some other way. It's the same for intelligence. The more intelligent you are, the less your ideas will mesh with other ways of thinking and the more likely you are to be constantly disagreeing with everyone unless you learn to keep it in check. I totally agree with bucaran. You have to develop a bit of thick skin and stop caring about what others think though, or have a sense of humour about it, which is always good for relating to people.

Nagareboshi Wrote:My ex-colleague is working for a big international company in Australia now. I don't know how the Aussies are thinking about tall people, but it will be the same as in this country - the person behind the tall stature is what counts, not how tall he is.

If he's 170-185cm, thats around the average. 185+ is where the (friendly) nicknames come in. Over than that, nothing much really. But then cause Australia is so multi-cultural, you have other groups who's average lie below 170cm. (I'm thinking of asians) I'm 176cm and chinese, so I've above average, which feels pretty good. Then I look at the caucasians, where they average 180cm and feel so small.

@people who are too tall and have trouble buying shorts, simply buy 3/4 pants and they should fit like normal shorts for you.