The Student Room Group

Surgery or other methods to make me shorter? Does anything exist/work?

I'm a girl, and 5ft 6 and I'd love to be a little bit shorter. I am obsessed with shoes and love wearing really high heels, but in a pair of six inch heels I'm like 5ft10-5ft11 (six inch heels don't add six inches of height unless you're in platforms in case anyone is wondering :-P). So I feel way too tall in heels. Plus, I'm curvy, I have an hourglass figure and I feel like if you're short and curvy you look ladylike but if you're tall and curvy you look like some kind of amazon. I have a really big bust and there's nothing worse than being 5ft 10 in heels and being approached by some 5ft 8 guy that's pretty much eye level with your bust :-(

I feel like if I was normal height (5ft 4) I could wear heels and still be smaller than the average man. I'd only need to lose 2 inches.

Is there any way I can do this? I heard of surgery to shorten your leg length but a google search has not yielded much. Or spinal surgery?

Given that I don't want to lose much is there ANY way of getting shorter at all....if I went on a low protein low calcium diet for instance would that cause some sort of reduction is bone density/and therefore height?

Advice appreciated serious replies only please

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i don't think you can shorten your bones, and especially not through diet. Diet being poor can stunt your growth but it cant reduce your height if your bones have already grown. The easiest compromise would just be to wear 4 inch heels instead.

Spinal surgery sounds extreme and i can't imagine what could be done to make you shorter through surgery on the spine.
Short answer: No.


Long answer:

1. 5'6" is not a grossly unusual height, you need not be so self-conscious. There's no surgeon in the realm who'd dream of operating on you, the risks of surgery would far, far outweigh the benefits of losing 2" off an otherwise totally normal height. When leg-shortening surgery is performed, it's for people who have legs which are significantly different in length from each other...

2. NO, a low protein and low calcium diet would not make you any shorter, and would be very bad for your health overall. Calcium intake and bone integrity are not laughing matters.

3. If you're not trolling me, then you should speak to someone about this, because to even consider ways to... Shorten.. yourself.. is really concerning. Certainly nobody would seriously ever perform surgery on you just for the sake of being able to wear bigger heels.
I'm 5ft10, and I just don't wear heels / wear shorter heels.

It is pretty extreme to be considering spinal surgery for this reason. I know you're probably just researching (and sorry, I can't help with the actual question), but 5ft6 is honestly a good height for a girl (assuming you're in Western Europe).

Certainly anything you do medically would come with complications that I doubt would be worth the two inches.

Love your height. There's a reason models are all tall. :smile:
Im 5ft you can have my height il have have ures
Reply 5
how the F is 5,6 tall? any shorter may aswell become the 8th dwarf.

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I'm 5'7
Reply 7
I hate being tall is there some sort of surgery I can take to make me shorter
Original post by dove2222
I hate being tall is there some sort of surgery I can take to make me shorter


Leg amputation.

Otherwise no.
Reply 9
I am a girl who's 5'11. In my opinion, being 5'6 would be a blessing! I've only worn heels a couple of times in my life and always took them off almost immediately and continued the event barefooted. That was honestly more comfortable than being the tallest person in the room. My sister is even taller than me. She has back problems because her spine is so long. She's had several operations. So all in all, I think you should just appreciate your height. I'd do anything to be 5'6
(edited 6 years ago)
I'm 19 and always been very tall since a young age. I am 5'11 and I am currently engaged to someone I love, but he is only 5'7-5'8. Finding men taller than me has been a problem, but I don't mind that he is shorter than me, but I never liked my height anyways. I wear only flats and and shoes/sneaks. I have a wedding coming up in May and it just wouldn't look right if I walk down the isle, look down on the man I plan on marrying and then kiss him... Is there any type of surgery or something that I could get to make me shorter and not have everyone look at me like I am a Giant...
I think u should come under a full sized bus and just push its lower roof im sure it'll definitely reduce ur height i too did it
I think u should come under a full sized bus and just push its lower roof im sure it'll definitely reduce ur height i too did it
Reply 13
You got your maths wrong.

You say you want to be 5'4 but with 6 inch heels you'd be 5'10.

But at the moment you claim you're 5'6 and with 6inch heels you're 5'10/11?

Our survey says ur eh!

5"6 is the perfect height for a woman. Heels more than 3-4inch dont look great imo. The hourglass figure is perfect for 5'5/5'6 if any taller you're half a man and if any shorter you'll become a plump if you dont maintain yourself lol

Besides as you get older you'll wear heels less so wont look too shorter than your man
im 6ft and im 15 , i cant wear heals i would love to be your height
why tf would you wanna be 5’4? You should be grateful that you’re average. And idk what heels your wearing but 5’11 is a bit of a reach.
This is seriously aggravating try being a girl who is 6 foot 3 inches tall then complain about how tall you are. You are by all means short in my opinion wanting to permanently damage your body in order to be able to wear heels and not be taller than some guys is outrageous
Reply 17
I’m a girl and i’m 5’11. I bet you can already imagine how hard it is for me to find a guy that’s taller than i am and that accepts my height as well. I get made fun of too much for my height and people seem to like shorter girls instead of tall ones. i stand out from all of my friends and family. My mom, brothers, sister, and dad are shorter than i am and i feel insecure and embarrassed to show up to any family or outside of home events. I would really like to know if there are any ways to shorten my bones without getting surgery. I really want to feel normal for once, and being a few inches shorter will definitely boost up my confidence.
Reply 18
same. we are the same height and honestly 5’6 would be amazing!! i’m only 14 and i’m 5’11. i get judged way too much on my height by guys and girls. most guys see me as “godzilla” or “king kong” (names they call me) and i’m always really insecure about showing myself outside. i can’t show up to any family or outside of house events because my self confidence is very low. j feel like everyone is judging me, talking about me, or just tying to avoid talking to me. i really wish i was shorter. even if it was just an inch or two.
I’m 5ft 9 and I’m fine with my height trust me there are plenty of advantages to being tall

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