In this illuminating episode of The Elevated Practice Podcast, host Dr. Gretchen Badami speaks with veteran acupuncturist, herbalist, and educator Cara Frank, founder of Six Fishes Healing Arts, China Herb Company, and China Herb Seminars.

With over four decades of clinical experience and teaching, Cara has shaped the landscape of herbal medicine in the United States. Their conversation centers on her newest passion project — a comprehensive Ophthalmology Course that demystifies how Chinese herbal medicine can address eye and vision disorders such as myopia, cataracts, visual fatigue, dry eye, and degenerative eye disease.

Cara shares the thinking process behind selecting and modifying formulas for eye conditions — from using Ding Zhi Wan to treat myopia with emotional roots, to differentiating damp-heat and deficiency patterns in red or cloudy eyes. She explains how classical theory, modern research, and her decades of clinical insight come together to help practitioners build confidence in diagnosing and prescribing herbs for complex internal conditions.

This discussion also touches on:

• Pattern-based reasoning in ocular medicine

• Preventive herbal approaches for early-stage cataracts and visual decline

• Practical guidance on dosage, form selection, and patient compliance

• Creative applications like herbal foot soaks, glycerin formulas for children, and bone-broth prescriptions that extend herbal care beyond the clinic

  
  

Whether you’re an herbalist, acupuncturist, or student, this episode will expand your perspective on what’s possible when ancient herbal wisdom meets modern ophthalmology — and inspire you to see the medicine through new eyes.

Thank you to our sponsor Handcraft Health for sponsoring and producing our podcast. Create a free account here!

https://handcraft.health/

Learn more about Cara Frank at;

https://sixfishes.com/cara-frank/