Another post about the doshas? Noo…

The first thing an Ayurvedic Doctor will want to know is who is my patient? What is their constitution? In Ayurveda, without this knowledge, you cannot treat the individual.

It is crucial to know your body type if you would like to “heal thyself”.

Once your dominant dosha is identified, treatments can be prescribed. “Treatments” are as simple as certain foods, herbs, and daily habits, such as the exercise that fits in with your dosha type.

Why is it so important to discover my type? Because our bodies are constantly acting in accordance with these categories, these doshas – all the time, in every moment. We can either make life harder for ourselves or follow our tendencies and swim with the current .

We can learn how to go with our personal flow.

Just like different families celebrate holidays in different ways, we will need different nourishment than what our neighbors will need. That’s why figuring out our dosha type (prakruti) will net us huge benefits. And the benefits will come from some fairly small modifications to our daily schedule.

As we figure out our dosha(s), we can get rid of this whole the notion of “fitting in” to a certain norm. There is no norm. Our dosha combination is not just who we are physically, but who we are as a whole; how we approach and experience the world.

Constitution Checklist

Below, you will find a more in-depth set of constitution checklists.

Give yourself a point for every true statement for each of the three lists below (for vatta, pitta, and kapha). Add up to get three results – a separate total for each dosha. Which total is highest? Vata, pitta, or kapha?

Vata

1. I do things quickly
2. I am always in motion
3. I am vivacious, vibrant, unpredictable
4. I pick up things quickly, but forget them just as fast
5. I am not good at memorization
6. I walk with a light, quick step
7. My brain goes a mile a minute
8. I have an active imagination
9. I can have a hard time making decisions
10. I have a thin build – I don’t gain weight easily
11. I can have difficulty falling or staying asleep
12. I am known to overdo it
13. I sometimes start things and don’t finish them
14. I tend to be restless
15. I can be compulsive about things
16. My energy comes in bursts
17. I tend to have irregular eating and sleeping habits
18. I love change
19. I am easily excitable – can go towards overwrought or drama
20. I don’t tolerate cold weather as well as others
21. I speak quickly and can be talkative
22. My moods change easily and I tend to be emotional
23. I become anxious or worried at times
24. I have cold hands and feet
25. I tend to get gassy or constipated
26. My skin gets very dry in the cold months (or always)

Pitta

1. I am intense
2. I am precise, orderly, efficient
3. I love a good challenge
4. When I want something, I go after it
5. I walk with a determined stride
6. I am very uncomfortable in hot weather
7. My opinions tend to be strong
8. I can be sarcastic
9. I like to stay out of the sun
10. I have a sharp intellect
11. I love competitive sports
12. I am a good public speaker
13. I have a commanding manner
14. I am an entrepreneur
15. I do not like my time being wasted
16. I tend to sweat easily
17. I sometimes get heartburn
18. I sometimes get rashes or acne
19. I can get irritated or angry easily
20. I can be critical – of myself and others
21. I need regular meals; if I do not get them, I become “hangry”
22. I have a strong appetite and can eat a lot
23. I love cold drinks and cold food
24. I get angry easily, but easily forget it and move on
25. I am a perfectionist
26. I become impatient easily
27. I can be stubborn
28. My hair might be: blond, red, sandy-colored,going grey early, balding, thin or fine
29. My bowels movements are like clockwork
30. I love, but do not tolerate, hot and spicy food
31. I am a leader

Kapha

1. I like to do things in a slow, relaxed way
2. I’m not easily flustered
3. I have a calm manner
4. I am known as being sweet, serene, affectionate and forgiving
5. I can skip meals easily
6. I tend towards being complacent
7. I feel empathy towards other people; people talk to me
8. I have a large, solid body build
9. My gait is slow and measured
10. My digestion is slow, I feel heavy after eating sometimes
11. I gain weight more easily than others and lose it more slowly
12. I have allergies
13. I have smooth, soft skin
14. I have excellent endurance and stamina
15. I don’t love change
16. I tend to have a runny nose or be mucus-y
17. I need eight hours of sleep; I sometimes oversleep
18. I sleep deeply and can be groggy upon awakening
19. I don’t get angry easily, but I can tend toward depression
20. I learn slowly but then I never forget it
21. I don’t like damp weather
22. My hair is thick and wavy – luxurious
23. I am an Earth Mother

Interpreting Our Dosha Mix

Did you tally up how many statements were true for each dosha? If one dosha is much higher than the others, that is your dominant dosha; whichever you have the most of is probably your dominant dosha. If two are close, you have two dominant doshas.

Having two dominant doshas is possibly the norm-ish. If you have two, you will find that you have some traits from each list in your own unique combination. In fact, we all have traits that are true for us in all three of the categories, because all three doshas play their vital part in our bodies.

The doshas are not meant to pigeon-hole anyone, and looking at those lists can be disconcerting if you fit really well into one specific category: maybe you don’t want to have the so-called negative traits of the dosha. Rest assured that with every gift there is a corresponding challenge. And every challenge, or “fault” that we have can be lovingly worked with, knowing that it is not a personal failing, but rather an elemental process. This is the yin and yang of life.

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