Specific skin issues?
The other stuff is Kapha although depression can be Vata also. Usually Vata is more associated with anxiety.
Generally I would suggest a lighter diet. Lighter means more raw veges or vege juices, less meat, less fat, dryer foods and pungent flavours. Raw is definitely best for you. Salads are a good idea with no salad dressing. Avoid oils except maybe mustard. Avoid anything unctuous.
Kapha characteristics are (generally) damp, oily, unctuous, slow, gentle, peaceful, content, sweet, dignified, gentle, slow to anger, slow to forget, slow to learn slow to forget, wonderful parent, smooth mellow voice, generally better looking physique as it is well developed, (ie Marilyn Monroe). Learns things slowly and methodically and never forget and become extremely good at whatever eventually.
Heavy and regular exercise is best, push yourself.
I could go on and on but without seeing and talking to you it is difficult to be specific.
Go to http://www.ayurveda.com/online_resource/index.html where you will find lots of resource info on diet daily routine etc. You will notice that generally following the Kapha diet will make you feel less of your issues.
I find that I am aware of what foods do to me so if I have to eat crap when I travel (I travel a lot) I know what to do about it, so it is very useful.
Oh, skin issues being not having perfect skin
... and random itchy, patchy, scaly situations on my hands and scalp especially. Exacerbated by refined sugar and other crap. I've been meaning to see my holistic practitioner/chiro about clearing that, but I've been saving my money for RPD pursuits instead.
Perhaps because I'm predominantly kaphic, I've gotten really good at just avoiding situations that would easily make me anxious (vattic).
I am very much a gentle soul - the only part of the kapha profile that doesn't fit me is the physical characteristics. I feel like I kind of have an elephant soul - but I'm not voluptuous physically. More petite (well, petite-out-of-shape-at-the-moment).
(I have so much fun with smileys!)
Thanks so much for the link! I'm going to double check my constitution and see how I can approach RPD ayurvedically... exciting. This could really help me out because I need some sort of guidance... lately I have been very confused about what to eat. I can feel my unbalance as I easily do the things that aggravate kapha and just keep me stuck. I don't think I can follow the "ideal daily routine" for kaphas (well, according to one of my books) - I embraced my free-flowing, random-seeming, usually nocturnal, and very un-routine lifestyle... that part I love. But within the non-routine, I do need more structure... for sure!
It's funny/sad, but ever since my foray into RPD, my crap food bingeing has made a fierce comeback. It's just like a pendulum, from left to right:
Crappiest SAD food (i.e., refined sugars/flours, deep-fried foods, processed foods)
Not-the-worst SAD food (raw/cooked veggies, limited grains, organic meats)
RPD
So if you imagine this pendulum (with Not-the-worst SAD food in the middle), I was eating pretty consistently in the middle - Not-the-worst SAD food. I was feeling great and looking great - the pendulum gently rocked towards more healthy raw foods and gently rocked back to possibly an indulgence here and not even "there," because I was pretty solid in the middle of the spectrum - didn't feel tempted to "cheat," felt sated, etc. But I wanted more health, vitality, etc., so I swung hard towards RPD (it's not like I even jumped into it, but I can see that it takes me a long time to transition into things - more than the average pittic
- I was/am a late bloomer). The greater I swing towards what I currently consider the healthiest way to go (RPD), the greater I swing the opposite direction into Crappiest SAD food.
So I can't even say that I'm healthier since introducing RPD (about two months ago) because I'm eating more SAD crap now than before I introduced RPD. And I deliberately use the word "introduced" instead of "started," because I'm sure I would be progressing better if I made myself eat more RPD or transitioned more slowly (cold turkey would not work for me). It's just funny/sad... the more RPD I eat, the more bad SAD I eat. And the more bad SAD I eat, the more depressed and discouraged and out-of-shape I get. I'm also aware that a lot of stress and just the general stress of change - no matter how wonderful and life-giving - have made the pendulum go crazy. But I haven't given up. Thank you so much for the advice - it's so encouraging. I will proceed in a more light, thoughtful, slow, methodical, witnessing/observing way. (Because of the SAD bingeing, I've been even more brutal on myself.) I feel unbalanced and neurotic, so I do need to take care to transition into RPD in a way that is best for me. I won't compare myself to other people (i.e., judge myself).
I do have AV's books for reference and will investigate how I can use Primal Diet for my specific issues. Concurrently, I will be researching an Ayurvedic approach, too. Sounds like fun!
P.S. I became a Scavenger today!
(my very first Shocked smiley on this forum!
and my second!)