375 History Series, A Love Affair with Herbs • Cara Frank

In this History Series episode we time-travel with the vivacious Cara Frank. Her story begins in the gritty, creative pulse of 1970s New York City, where as a teenager, she was navigating the counter cultural scene. Her first encounter with acupuncture was anything but ordinary—an illegal treatment that changed her life and set her on the path she travels today.

Cara’s journey is a tapestry woven with threads of rebellion, discovery, and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge. From the scarring moxa treatments of Dr. So, to her worldview changing with the discovery of herbs in a Beijing hospital. Cara’s story is one of exploration and deep connection to the roots of Chinese medicine practice. 

Listen in as we explore the alchemy of Cara’s life in Chinese medicine—as she reflects on  the influential figures who guided her, her insights into the community's growth and the importance of mentorship.  All with her hardscrabble wisdom, humor, and a dash of New York grit.

In This Conversation We Discuss:

• The landscape of the times when Cara first heard about acupuncture
• A propensity to leap at new opportunities
• The early days a NESA, lack of textbooks and popularity of bootlegged materials
• The phone call that lead to closing her clinic and getting out of town
• How disposable needles changed things
• Falling in love with herbs in China
• Working at Lincoln hospital
• How the Black Panthers looked out for the health of their community
• The legal challenges of practicing acupuncture in New York in the early 1980s before it was licensed
• The development of acupuncture education and regulation in the United States
• The progression of herbal medicine education and understanding, from basic knowledge to a deeper historical and structural framework
• The process of writing and translating Chinese medicine tex
• Considerations at the end of a career
• Concerns about the future of the acupuncture profession and the importance of practitioner involvement
• Reflections on a long career in Chinese medicine and what might be next

Pay attention! Stay curious and be a lifelong learner.​​

I am an acupuncturist, herbalist, businesswoman, and author. I was raised in a health food store in Brooklyn, NY. When I was 8, I cartwheeled 5 miles from Greenwich Village through Soho and Chinatown and across the Brooklyn Bridge.

For over 40 years, I've brought my cartwheeling passion to Chinese medicine. At 17, I had my first acupuncture treatment. At 20, I enrolled in acupuncture school. In 1998, I studied herbal medicine in Beijing, where I fell deeply in love with East Asian Herbs. Since then, I have devoted my life to studying and teaching the topic.

I was an original item writer for the first herb exam offered by the NCCAOM. I founded two Chinese Herb Departments, with curriculum and clinic and brought them both to regional and national accreditation.

I founded Six Fishes Acupuncture in Philadelphia, where I manage a busy acupuncture practice and act as the head fish of a warm and lively office. I am the president of China Herb Company and, in 2021, launched China Herb Seminars. I have published articles in international journals and am the author of TCM Case Studies: Eye Ear Nose and Throat Disorders.

Links and Resources

You can visit Cara on her clinic website, see what is on offer over at China Herb Co, learn something useful at China Herb Seminars, and do be sure to check out her unique approach to Fertility. 

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