My son hates being short.

Maybe they do, but not to my knowledge. If they do they’ve done very well at getting on with their lives.

Like I said the one that openly hates his height has a miserable life because he can’t get past it. It’s like a self fulfilling prophecy.

Thinking the exact same thing, 'oh don't worry... Yet'. It's all just fuel even though it's well meaning

Times must have changed a lot then, maybe because the average height is taller now? My son is teased a lot and has not taken in pe kit because of being bullied about being short in rugby etc - it’s the first thing people comment on on seeing him after a period of not seeing him,

But most short men really do just go about their lives without any drama or disadvantages. My dad is short, as is my husband, neither of which have had much stick about it, no more than I have for wearing glasses for example.

Gosh sorry, you’re right. A thoughtless comment. Apologies 🫣

I agree with you, it’s incredible how people - especially women comment on tall boys! It’s insane - nothing we can do about height but all other things like manners, personality etc overlooked

Pp's inference that he can't lead a full life if on the shorter side is ridiculous.

i agree people always point out the exceptions (same with successful people with ADHD) but the reality is there are men in America having their legs broken and rebuilt inches taller in painful and extensive operations as the fact is smaller men are viewed badly by the majority and they are belittled about this for their lives.
we saw a private paediatric endocrinologist in London- Dr Wei,she works for the NHS and I think you’d be better off using someone who doesn’t who for the NHS as they might give you more help. X

How tall are you, that 6ft is only “acceptable”? You do realise that’s taller than the vast majority of men in the U.K.?

Watch The Bear with him. Without mentioning height! Its a great series anyway and he'll look up Jeremy Allen White and see that he went on to be in the sexiest pants ad ever.

Obviously it’s what’s inside that counts, but I’d be amazed if the ALL short men in your life really don’t have a problem with it and don’t wish they were a little taller.

Are you male though?

Most of my extended family are short. 5’8 is as tall as the men get. Some are 5’4.
None of this has stopped them from living well, meeting new partners, getting married, having children.

If your son is so worried about this side of things as others have said I’d be worried who he’s watching on the internet, because nearly every short man I know doesn’t have a problem with it at all, and the one that does has ended up almost incel-like and hates women because they don’t want him, which is wrong, they don’t want him because he’s a nasty bitter man who rants about shallow women, I mean, who’d find that attractive?

Teach him that it doesn’t matter. What matters is who he is.

I think it's a bit of a non issue, honestly. People saying short boys don't get girlfriends is ridiculous. Two of the most popular men in the UK are shorter than average - Ant and Dec. I have five sons, two over 6ft, two around 5"8 and one who is 5"11. The tall ones are taller than their father and me. The shorter two have had the most success with the opposite sex! They're both ginger as well which is also seen as something negative. When I was at school many years ago one of the most popular boys in my class was quite short. My youngest was short at 14 then had a growth spurt which was so rapid it gave him stretch marks across his back. He went from around 5 feet two to 5,11 in less than a year.

An endocrinoligst is the sort of expert you need, but you probably won't be referred if the GP thinks your son is on track to reach his predicted adult height.

Your son's predicted height will be somewhere in the middle of your height and your husband's heigh, so he's never going to be tall. (There are always outliers who buck the trend, but that's the general guide.)

If there is concern that there could be a growth hormone deficiency, an x-ray of the wrist can help a professional determine whether there is still a possibility of further growth. The next step is to have a test in hospital (day patient - you go in early morning, nil by mouth, they'll insert a canual, take blood throughout the day and inject your DS with medication to stimulate the pituitary gland. Dr told us it's unpleasant, and the meds make many children nauseous, causes headaches and other side effects, so it's not something to do unless you really have to).

If growth hormones are prescribed, they aren't a guarantee. They're most successful when taken before puberty starts.

I'd concentrate on doing what you already are - continue to listen and be there for your son, acknowledge his concerns but remind him that height doesn't limit greatness - Yuri Gagarin (5'2") was the first person in space, Beethoven (5'1" or shorter) was one of the greatest composers in history, Queen Victoria was only 4'11"! Dating is hard for everyone, and when you're young, you think you have a type, whether that's a blonde surfer or tall, dark and handsome. At some point you realise that intelligence, kindness, a sense of humour and shared interests matter more.

My boyfriend is around 5’5. He said he had all the jokes in school but has grown confident later in life. It is a shame as the first time people meet him it’s always I didn’t realise he was so short

And I'm also often heard making positive comments about smaller people eg 'Wow he's a little flyer on the wing, he's the perfect size to fly past them all.' Etc and this was the case with the unhappy student, his size made him the great sports person he was. I've also heard boys call themselves small and mighty which makes me smile!

OP I think everyone telling you their amazing stories of short kids who are now 6ft are trying to be helpful, but in my experience it's just contributing to the problem. DH is short, has always been small and short, and what screwed with him more than his height is his mother telling him he was bound to grow taller eventually - she's wonderful but couldn't face being honest about how tall he was ever likely to become based on family history.
Luckily he's confident, funny, outgoing and very handsome (I would think so eh?) so has never struggled with women – his group of uni mates are all over 6ft and in the past he was at least as successful as them, honestly I didn't think I had a chance with him because he was so popular!
Now we have 2 DS and the eldest - 4 - has started asking questions about when he'll get tall. We've been really honest with him about it and cut over MIL trying to say anything otherwise, just because we don't want him to spend his teens pining for something he can't have.
It sounds like you're doing all the right things (from my perspective as an also very short person 5ft1) in encouraging him to develop his personality and interests, and to recognise that everyone has something that disadvantages them in the dating pool.
Personally speaking, because I'm short I think I've always cared less about height, although found dating tall men a bit tricky.. felt like a toddler holding hands, couldn't easily dance together, no chatting at gigs/loud bars.. some people won't date him, but equally some people won't date blonde men, men without or unable to grow beards, hairy men etc etc.. it's all preference! One last anecdote, my best friend is a very tall - supermodel tall - woman, and she's happily married to a short king. The fact that most of us shorties exist is testament to short men getting the girl!

This is probably outing but maybe this will help you make decisions for your child or understand the process and adjust expectations. My youngest is receiving growth hormones therapy, has been since age 7 and we were told it would be for approximately 10 years. I am 5.3, husband is 6.4. Child was born on second highest centile but by the time we were seen (referral took extra long due to covid) he was no longer registering on the centile charts. This was obviously concerning to paeds and fuelled the referral. The first “test” that was applied was to do an average parental height (mine and my DH’s height added up then divided by 2), plot that on centile chart and child is expected to be within 2 centiles up or down of that average parental height. Our child was much smaller so we were sent for tests which included x rays of his hands (showed he was 2 years behind average growth for his age) then a quite complicated and risky series of blood tests while they were injecting him with insulin to trigger the production of growth hormones. This showed he was producing barely any. Our NHS trust wants 2 “proofs” that there is an issue before agreeing to growth hormone treatment so he also had to have an MRI.
If you and husband are both short, chances are you won’t get past that first test of your child charting outside of what is expected from average parental height. You can do these calculations yourself and save yourself time and aggro trying to get referrals. However, your child being at puberty age, it wouldn’t harm to monitor him to ensure he develops as expected and push for him to be seen if you are concerned.
Our child is responding well to treatment so far but realistically, he probably will end up on the shorter end of the scale. We are celebrating his abilities and the advantages of having a lower centre of gravity as a way to boost his confidence. I know it’s easy to worry but I have faith that one day he will find his tribe and/or his person and they will love him just as he is.

The fact your were not willing to share his current height comes across as though you are embarrassed about it too! Maybe that vibe isn't helping his insecurity.

I suspect people are asking because there is short then there is unusually short.

My nephew is one of the shortest in his year. He will be 16 in a couple of months and is now 5'8. He shot up a few inches in the last 6 months, so he was around 5'6 at 14 when most of the other boys were heading for 6ft!

If its any comfort, I went to school with boys who were slight and short. They are around 5'5 - 5'7 now as fully grown men. They have all gone on to have wives and families from what I can see on Facebook.

Not all women are shallow height hunters.

Sned him for sessions with a counsellor
He does not need to be on tinder at 14

OP, I guess what you can tell him is that everybody has something:

Too short (boys) / too tall (girls)
Too hairy (especially girls)
Ears that stick out
Glasses
Too skinny (boys) / too fat
Stammer
etc

It’s easy to think your ‘thing’ is the worst but realistically most people have something that doesn’t fit the universal standards of beauty… and they still manage to find partners.

The depressing part, though, is that even when people have one of these ‘things’ they will themselves often discriminate, for ex the short boy will find it unfair that girls are after tall boys, but he won’t be attracted by the hairy girls (random example).