Chloe Kelly never felt tall until she transitioned. At 5 feet 10 inches, she was average as a man, but as a woman, she became hyper-aware of her height. Now 5 feet 9 inches after HRT, she shares her journey of self-acceptance and a brief modeling attempt.
Height Becomes a Topic
On a first date, Lee asked Kelly, “Do you play netball?” before she even sipped her coffee. It’s a common question now. “No, I don’t play netball, yes I can reach the top shelf, and thanks for pointing out that ‘actually you’re quite tall, aren’t you’,” she replied. Lee looked embarrassed. For 45 years, no one mentioned her height because she lived as a man. “I never felt short, but I never felt tall either. I just felt ‘average’ – something you don’t realise is a privilege until you no longer qualify for it,” Kelly writes.
Transition and Self-Consciousness
Kelly’s journey to understanding she was transgender was difficult. After coming out, she became self-conscious about her height. Wearing heels made her hyper-aware; she stooped entering rooms and was often the tallest woman. On another date, a man asked her parents’ heights to calculate why she was so tall. Ironically, after two years of HRT, she shrank slightly due to a pelvic tilt, now standing 5 feet 9 inches – shorter than Taylor Swift, Nicole Kidman, and Princess Diana, a fact she deploys when called tall.
A Leap into Modeling
Friends compared her height to supermodels, suggesting she try modeling. Most models are 5 feet 8 inches to 5 feet 11 inches, so at 5 feet 9 inches, Kelly was ideal. She applied to about 20 London agencies, receiving polite no’s, 15 silences, and one callback. “When the email hit my inbox, I had to re-read it several times to make sure it was genuine,” she says. At the casting, she was measured in leggings and a vest, then photographed without smiling. Though not selected, the experience boosted her self-esteem. “For the first time since transitioning, I’m proud of my height. I’m standing tall, in my body and embracing exactly who I am. A tall woman,” Kelly concludes.
