Our energy always involves more than one element. For that reason we are often made up of more than one type. It's fun to conjecture what certain combinations might produce. For example, a combination of Wood and Metal might read, "I'd rather do it perfectly myself!" Metal and Fire might produce the statement, "Things get emotional in my ivory tower!" Fire and Wood: "If I don't get my way, I'll scream!" or "I have to work out every last detail to the letter or I get upset."

Earth and Wood might say, "If we don't make peace, I'll get very angry!" Whereas Earth and Water might ask, "We're all one big happy family, aren't we?"

You'll feel like a gypsy, looking at hands. People will be amazed at your accuracy in discovering personal matters. However, specific illnesses are hard to diagnose by observing hands because the body is more complicated than the types imply. Tongue and pulse diagnosis are used to confirm what we intuit in this way.

It is important also to determine the cause of an imbalance, not just the tendency toward it. In addition, hand diagnosis is inexact because so many of us live under constant stress from pollution, fatigue, or medications that our adrenal glands and immune strength may be threatened whether we have Water constitutional type or not. Many of us live big-city lives where we tend to eat richly at late hours. Our digestion suffers whether we have an Earth hand or not.

Therefore, the best use of the Five Element constitutional types is to determine your relative health: How is your chi doing in terms of your type? In other words, for the Earth person, the following questions should be considered: How is your digestion? Is your vitality impaired by indigestion or pain? Do you crave sweets excessively? Are there indications of blood sugar imbalances? Is your problem chronic or acute?

Then you have to decide which Earth problems to take care of first. For example, what is more troublesome-bloating from indigestion, or an ungrounded feeling from being "off center"? This kind of observation method may help you get in touch with feelings you did not know you had. Perhaps you did not link chronic indigestion with relationship problems, or fear with fatigue. Many times, herbal combination remedies treat mind and body problems at once.