>
A 5ft 9in woman towering over her fiance says the couple is constantly ‘stopped on the street’ due to their unusual height difference.
New York couple Samantha ‘Sam’ Espinal, 24, and Stephen Di Fede, 32, don’t get a second glance when they sit together.
But the engaged duo regularly gets comments, looks, and stops when they’re next to each other due to Sam being six inches taller than her 5-foot-3 fiancé.
People even stop by and congratulate him on getting a tall woman.
The couple admits that it took them a while to get used to the height difference due to the societal expectation that men are taller than women.
But now they claim they don’t even notice it and encourage others to open their minds to people of all heights.
A 5ft 9in woman who towers over her fiance says the couple is constantly ‘stopped on the street’ due to their unusual height difference
New York couple Samantha ‘Sam’ Espinal, 24, and Stephen Di Fede, 32, insist they ‘don’t notice’ their six-inch height difference, despite admitting it ‘bothered’ them at first
Event planner Sam says she “never thought” she could date a shorter man, but says she stopped noticing the height difference when she “fell in love” with Stephen.
Sam warned that “rejecting people because of their height can cause you to miss out on someone who could be your dream partner.”
The content creator and event planner said, “I always thought I could never date someone shorter than me.”
‘The height difference bothered me a bit at first. I couldn’t see myself being okay with it.
“People would stop us on the street to congratulate Stephen on dating a taller woman, it felt a bit weird.
‘But when I fell in love, it just went away. I just stopped thinking about it.
“Now I can see that people are 100% missing out on relationships because they write people off based on their height.”
Stephen, a content creator and dancer, added: “I always hoped to date people who were taller than me; if I only stayed with shorter women, I would have a very small group to choose from.”
“In a funny way, it brings humor to our relationship, like when I literally can’t reach something high.”
“Other than mocking and laughing on social media, we don’t really think about it.”
Sam and Stephen met through work in October 2016, when she did an internship at the school where he worked as a teacher.
Sam originally thought she could never date someone shorter than her, but she was eventually attracted to Stephen.
Sam now warns others that “rejecting people because of their height can cause you to miss out on someone who could be your dream match.”
The couple started dating in February 2017, and Sam says it was a “shock for her when they got together” because she had always thought she could never date someone shorter than her.
Stephen proposed to Sam in November 2022, getting down on one knee in front of a beautiful New York sunset.
They began dating properly in February 2017. The couple became official the following September.
Sam said she initially told Stephen that she didn’t know if she could go through with a relationship, but eventually changed her mind.
Sam said: ‘When we met it was a shock to me and it took me a while to adjust.
“I started to adjust pretty quickly the more I started to fall in love. She stopped bothering me and I stopped thinking about it.
“I was insecure wearing heels around Stephen because I didn’t want to appear even taller than him.”
But Stephen said the height difference was “not a big deal” to him.
She added: “I’ve been short all my life, so most women are taller than me.” I accepted it a long time ago.
Now it’s rare for Stephen and Sam to notice or be affected by the height difference, because it’s their norm.
They post regularly on Tik Tok and making jokes about the height difference in an attempt to normalize it.
Stephen said that it actually brings humor to the relationship and allows them to “tease” each other, like when Sam has to grab something from a high shelf for him.
But he said it’s just “funny” for them, and other than that, they “don’t really think about it.”
Sam and Stephen have managed to find humor in their height difference, even making fun of themselves in tongue-in-cheek TikTok interviews.
Stephen said that it actually brings humor to the relationship and allows them to “tease” each other, like when Sam has to grab something from a high shelf for him.
The couple posts entertaining videos about their height difference to try to normalize it for other people.
The couple got engaged in November 2022, after Stephen got down on one knee, and they plan to tie the knot later this year.
Sam revealed that she won’t be wearing heels to the wedding, even though it has nothing to do with height.
Stephen said: ‘I actually love it when she wears heels. I’m like, “Wow, dammit, that’s a very beautiful woman.”
But Sam added: “I always wanted to be barefoot at my wedding, even before I met Stephen.”
Now the couple is sharing their relationship to show people that height differences shouldn’t matter.
They say one of her TikTok followers reached out to say her videos convinced her to try it out with a guy who was shorter than her, and now they’re engaged.
Stephen and Sam warned the others that they might miss out on their perfect match because they get discarded too early due to height differences.
“You need physical attraction to someone, but if you like everything except their height and you write them off, you’re missing out on something great,” Stephen explained.
“If you automatically put people down, you are limiting your potential.”
Sam said: ‘People miss out a thousand per cent by writing people off because of their height.
“If people would let their guard down and be attracted to someone they think they might like, it would be much easier to find love. The way you connect with someone is very important – personality is what matters most.’