Height issue: can you date a short man?

What is it about dating short men that most women are afraid of? You find even the shortest of all women saying she would rather die single than date a guy her height or shorter.

When you randomly ask women what kind of man they would want for a partner, among the physical attributes would be height and certainly they would say “preferably a guy taller than me”. So a man’s height is a big deal after all.
Women sometimes tend to overlook great qualities a short guy may possess and opt for the one who has “the height” but may be lacking in character.

A girlfriend of mine had to turn down a proposal from a man who had been footing our lunch bills at campus for close to a year because he was short.
She told me he was “too short for her taste”. It is, however, amazing how she never noticed his height on those expensive lunch offers.
But society too puts women in a difficult situation as a man being taller than his woman is seen as a sign of superiority. To escape public criticism therefore, women look out for taller partners.
Irene Nakimuli says her ex was shorter than her and despite his good looks and character, she could not stand the thought of appearing in public with him. “The only time I was comfortable moving with him was in the dark. During the day, I would appear with him on rare occasions and even then for the sake of not annoying him or making him realise the discomfort his height brought to me.”
She recalls vividly a day she went shopping with him but made sure she led the way and not walk by his side so as not to raise eyebrows from the public.
This discomfort, is in fact one of the reasons she eventually broke up with him.
Just like Nakimuli, Josephine Katono says she once dated a short mum she felt uncomfortable with whenever it came to attending parties with him.

She says just like most women, she also worships wearing high-heeled shoes for parties but with her short boyfriend, heels became a nightmare because wearing them would make the height difference between her and her man obvious.
But do short men feel embarrassed dating taller women?

Twenty four-year-old Joseph Nsubuga says one of the qualities he looks out for in a woman is height.
He says a woman should be taller than him because he does not want to have short children like him. He hopes the mother of his children would pass on the tall genes to them.

Nsubuga says he has for long been bullied over his height, something he does not want his children to experience.
Although very few men and women could see the good Nsubuga sees in being with women taller than him, counselors warn that people should desist from choosing partners based largely on their physical attributes.

Counsellors take
Henry Nsubuga, a counsellor, cautions people not to concentrate on physical attributes when choosing a partner but look out for a person’s character and see if they can live with it since it determines your stay with that person.
“Issues of height, weight and beauty are temporary, added advantages when looking for someone to settle with. But key issues like virtues and character should be at the forefront if one is to consider a lifelong relationship.”

Would you date a short man?

“I would not date a short man because they are not only short tempered but also hard to shop clothes for. When they date a woman taller than them, they always think she does not respect them.” Lizipher Akanyijuka, hair dresser.

“Short men are usually proud which I cannot tolerate. And the fact that I am tall, dating short men is completely out of the picture. How can I move with a man I am taller than, I cannot even imagine what people seeing us would think.”
Robinah Najjemba, social scientist.

“Short men are showoffs and misers. It is hard for a short man to give a woman money and not question how it was spent because they are used to women de-toothing them and rejecting them because of their height.”
Sharaj Bint Muhammad, fashion enthusiast.

“Short men like commanding women around. They make sure you get to do whatever they ask and if you refuse, they take it as disrespect. I have seen it with my friends who date them and seriously it’s a turn off.”
Susan Nabacwa, teacher.