Constitutional Types

Carrying on with basic Naturopathy today I shall discuss archetypes or Constitutional Typing. There are several ways of differentiating a person's type. The anatomist or kinesiologist would use the body somatyping of mesomorph, ectomorph or endomorph to be able to deduce a person's capabilities, strengths and weaknesses from it.The classically trained homoeopath would use the archetypes that Hahnemann pioneered, namely the Miasmitic concept of disease. Briefly this means that we are all born with certain hereditary weaknesses that represent a disease taint handed down to us from our forebears. The Ayurvedic practitioner would archetype using the Ida (Deep or Organic) and Pingala (Superficial and non-organic) strengths and weaknesses. In a similar way the TCM practitioner would classify the person's strengths and weaknesses in terms of Yin and Yang complementary aspect of Chi of individual organs that form the Elements. The following is a very brief summary of what to look for with body language, speech and emotional imbalance - remembering that a high percentage of our disease stems from psychosomatic origins. I have included dreams, but these can be subjective and many practitioners just simply don't like to quiz about them.

Liver and Gall Bladder imbalance (Wood Element) - Tendency to stoop and have round shoulders, shuffle. They speak with a drawl or whining tone that can be very irritating. Emotionally they are angry, irritable and indifferent towards others. They dream of violence.

Heart, Small Bowel, Pericardium and Triple Energizer imbalance (Fire Element) - Tendency to gabble and chatter. Get anxious and agitated. They are noisy and curious. They may be giggly and very shy. Dream of laughter, being shut in or exposed.

Kidney and Bladder imbalance (Water Element) - Rigid spines and tend to shuffle. Tend to be 'weak' people. Insecurity and diffidence. Have extreme fear and phobias. Dream of drowning and water.

Lung and Large Bowel imbalance (Metal Element) - Boisterous and heavy. Very forward and sit on the front of their seats when interviewed. Can be shy and suppress emotions. They cry a lot but need to be alone to do this. Dream of sadness, also flying and singing.

Spleen and Stomach imbalance (Earth Element) - Have a tendency to put on weight or lose weight rapidly. They have dark secrets and can be fearful, anxious or depressed. Cannot express themselves readily. Dream of food and fasting.