"Young Looking" trans men

hi guys

I'm Anthony and I'm a trans guy who's in year three of university (I'm 20) and I struggle a lot with the fact that I look like more of a high schooler than a university student!

It's very depressing really. I am living as a female at school because I haven't fully come out as a trans male. While that is bad enough, I basically look like a 14 year old boy. So not only do people not see me as male, they don't even see me as an adult!

This weekend, I went out to a party (which I never do), and while I was there, a guy told me I look 12 and asked me to see my ID. I was so fu*king embarrassed and angry. And then the next day, I find out from a friend that somebody had taken a photo of me with a caption "12 year old spotting a this party". It makes me feel so awful. I have poor self image as is, and I am very depressed.

Enough about me... does anybody else experience this? Do you try to make yourself look older and how?

 

I too look much younger than I am. I am almost 28 and people mistake me for 16-17 pretty frequently. I just stand up straight, keep my head up, try to look confident (even if you aren't) and not let it bother me if someone gives me a remark regarding age. Try to give off an aloof air if you could as well. Normally just not looking non confident and nervous makes you an easy target for others to pick on, but if you give off the opposite vibe, it will work the other way. As for anything physical, I can't say I thought of anything that worked as far as "looking older" goes. Just acting the act has helped most people stay out of my business though. Hopefully someone else may have advice on clothing.

---------- Post added 23rd Jan 2017 at 02:46 PM ----------

*just looking non confident

darn typos

 

Transmen are just elves. Pre-T we're all eternally 13

 

It's really shitty that they took a picture of you. Sorry that happened.

I definitely look younger than I am. I often get mistaken for a ~13 year old boy. That's what happens when you're pre-T and pass as male. You look like a guy who hasn't gone through puberty yet. Personally, I haven't found anything I can do about it yet. I'm just kinda stuck this way.

 

Nope, I get 15 most of the time.

Well you need to do the stuff you did in your teens when trying to buy cigarettes. Get some adult clothes, look professional and it should be fine.

 

I didn't have much luck with cigarettes back then :lol:

 

Then have you trained your voice? That does a big part too.

 

Oh boy, do I have experiences with this.

I once had a kid at my job - who looked to be prepubescent - ask me how old I was. When I responded with "twenty", he gave me a sideways glance and told me I looked 13.

On another occasion, a male customer who looked to be in his late 30s or early 40s saw me stocking and looked at me closely for a second. When he asked how old I was and I told him, his response was "Damn, I didn't look that way when I was your age."

Another women said that I was "the youngest person" she'd ever seen working at my store. When I told her I was 20, she laughed and said "wow."

On a separate occasion when I was buying some clothes at a department store, the lady ringing me up guessed my age to be 16, and then told me I ought to be "grateful" to look so youthful.

I guess as long as I'm passing, I'll take the whole "14 year-old boy" dilemma until I start hormones. I've taken to dressing older so that I look older, but I'm uncertain of how successful I've been.

 

Feminine looking men get gauged as younger, and because some men at age 15 looks 30 if you're smooth faced you risk being perceived as gay or very young.

If a transman wants to pass well, T is pretty important, voice is the biggest step but if you're smooth skin and got a chubby face you're pretty much done.

 

Yes. This . I remember really hating my voice so I'd go out to the woods by my house and scream my lungs off. I did it every day that I could. I later found out what I did was an unsafe metho but I developed a raspy yet raw tone of voice from it. A safer method to try would be to just sigh deeply to the point where it vibrates your throat, and/or lift your head up so that you see the ceiling, and hum as you slowly drop you head back down and repeat. Do those exercises a few times a day and you will get results in a few months

 

@ PrinceVegeta: Funny, we had the same idea. I destroyed mine too and now sound like a teenage boy who smoked a little too much.

 

This is the FTM curse. There is no getting around it until you start T, and even then you will probably always look younger than you are, but at least you'll look like you've hit puberty.

 

Hahaha. Dude bro - I had that problem almost completely throughout high school until I was 17 and heard a professional singers advice about singing.. (yes, I tried to learn to sing lmao) It turns out guys "speak with their gut" and women tend to "speak more with their throat". Practice deep slow breaths and really widen the rib cage.. And that method I spoke about earlier with making the deep breaths vibrate the throat.. do that until you are feeling like the noises you are making are well, coming from your gut. This will help to take away atleast some of the "smoker voice" but your voice will probably always sound a bit raspy.. It's just a guess though. Mine never went completely away, but I do sound better.. though smoker voice or not, it's better than a girl voice :eusa_danc

Meh.. Maybe I'm a rare case. I already look like I hit puberty for the most part I think lol. I normally get mistaken for 16-17. I take it :lol:

 

I'm 25 and people always assume that I am 18

 

Hey, at least that's basically saying you look borderline adult lol

 

Meh. I want to look 25. Other 25 year guys in my class look so hot and I am just the chubby kid in the back.

 

Be careful what you wish for lmao. One day you'll probably enjoy looking younger - plus there's nothing wrong with being chubby in my opinion.
*can sometimes be a chubby chaser*

---------- Post added 25th Jan 2017 at 11:59 AM ----------

:eek: it's not what you think though. I am not like those fcked up ppl that want the person to get even fatter... that's just ridiculous

---------- Post added 25th Jan 2017 at 11:59 AM ----------

hgasdjdhgejrtjehtehdg keyboard smash. Now this is me just being nervous when I meant to compliment you.

 

This happens to me a lot. I'm 23, and the people I know at Dunkin Donuts are surprised when I tell them how hold I am, because they think I'm 16. It's a mixed blessing, but it can suck ass.

 

My family has inherited good genes when it comes to youthfulness but whit genes for everything else.
My brother is 27 and looks 18, my eldest brother is 29 and gets called 21, and I general get called 18 though I also get called 16 a lot as well.

Lol I am chubby as in fat and news to lose a few pounds. I hope to start going to a gym soon. I'll always be a bit chubby though (must never give up cake and ice cream >_<)

 

I'm still pretty young but I often get told my 16 year old sister looks older than me and once got my cheeks pinched by a bouncer outside a pub. Can't wait to get on hormones.