Her home of Wuxi also consisted of many families that had medical knowledge. With a family so ensconced in wealth, education, and medical knowledge, it is unsurprising that she would eventually excel in at least one of those spheres. 

Surprisingly, her education began at an early age. Her affluent family ensured her, almost immediate, education. When she was between four and eight years old, she recalls reciting poems to her grandfather. Her grandfather enjoyed his grandchildren's poetry recitations with a glass of wine, but Yunxian's recitation particularly intrigued him. One day, as she was reciting poems for him, he exclaimed passionately that she is smart and must become a doctor. Notably, he argued that her intelligence was too valuable to subject her to simple "women's" work. Many regarded her as a child prodigy because of her vast knowledge of Confucian texts and poetry. 

Although her grandfather initially gave her this idea, it was her grandmother, Née Ru, who ultimately initiated the process of teaching her. Tan Yunxian began studying various medical texts including The Classic of Difficult Cases and the Rhymed Formula on the Pulse. In addition to these texts, Ru guided her through the learning process. Rather than a typical teaching style, Ru used a continual stream of questions to teach Yunxian. 

Tan Yunxian enjoyed her learning journey and even practiced modestly on herself. In the preface of her book now titled Miscellaneous Records of a Female, she details suffering from a blood-related illness. She had seen multiple male physicians for this illness. Unfortunately, they all failed to help her symptoms. Unsatisfied with these outcomes, she began using her medical knowledge to treat her symptoms. She started seeing progress with her own treatment which proved the usefulness of the medicine she was studying.  

Her treatment of herself blossomed into treating more people but only after her grandmother fell ill. Unfortunately, her grandmother succumbed to her illness, and Tan was devastated. Records describe her failing to get out of bed and ceasing to treat anyone. 

One night of restless sleep, she was visited by her grandmother in a dream. Her grandmother told her how to cure herself. She also encouraged Tan to begin treating other people. 

Following this dream, Tan Yunxian began treating herself the way her grandmother had urged. Yunxian noted her progress to be miraculous. It was this dream that initiated her courage to begin treating patients other than herself or her own children. 

In the years following her recovery, she went on to treat several unique women and children successfully. Her rise to fame was unique in terms of women physicians. No records claim she treated famous, royal patients. Instead, she worked in her home and treated those in her community. 

Tan Yunxian: A Revolutionary Figure

Education

Medical Career

Through her miraculous healing and story of her grandmother commanding her to practice medicine, she was able to gain the respect of her community.

This respect was evident when reading the words of other male figures that she knew. Her cousins Ru Luan and Ru Shaocan wrote that they admired her achievements and respected her talent. Even so, literate women like herself were rising in number, but their inferiority remained. The respect she garnered was atypical for a physician like her at the time: a female physician. 

Consequently, male doctors were not able to examine women or children as they would men. These physicians weren't able to feel a female patient's body, smell her, or ask questions. They would communicate with her through her father or husband, and although male physicians tried to help, there was an impossible barrier. 

Tan Yunxian, as a woman, was able to do full examinations with women and treat thoroughly. In her book, she also analyzes how emotions affect the health of her patients. She not only connected to her patients on a physical level, but also an emotional level. 

Stories about her impact highlight the fact she was able to talk to women that were essentially isolated from the outside world including concubines and spinster aunts. This emotional connection reinforced her bleief that emotions were indicative of overall health too. 

As an Author

Tan Yunxian's fame rests in her published work. Her book exists as the very first written work by a female physician alone, with no men as contributors. This sole factor set her apart from other female physicians that could have existed at the time. 

The publication of her book was wrought with difficulties too. In the Ming dynasty, the duty to filial piety still held plenty of weight, so she could not be as outspoken about her career aspirations in the light of her elders' orders. 

In addition, women's writing was not allowed to leave the household. Her household would have been the subject of shame, of lost chastity, and a damaged reputation had she published it at a younger age. Younger women were instructed to burn their written works to keep these values intact. Knowing how this would affect her household and family, Yunxian decided to create this book when she was around fifty years old. At an older age, these unspoken social rules were less strict. 

Even so, she did not intend for her book to be published in a widespread manner. She only wanted to allow women the chance to treat themselves, calling back to when she had to treat her own blood illness. 

It was the men in her life who published the book for the public. Her brother Tan Yifeng and great nephew, both of whom wrote postscripts to the book, preserved her writings and eventually copied them in large numbers to tell her story. Without their contributions, her story would not have been told. 

Of the 31 cases she included, all of them were female. She wrote honestly of the struggles of women in daily Ming dynasty life. These struggles included mental and physical issues, issues with their household duties or status as a wife, and the problems with living with their extended family. Another important distinction between Yunxian and earlier famous female physicians is that she treated lower class women. Her cases note the patient's age, gender, social class, and more information. Previous women physicians were likely recorded because of who they treated.

"Tan Yunxian always achieved outstanding results."

- Tan Yifeng

"She had no descendants, but she will remain in immortality this way by her book."

- Tan Yunxiann's great nephew