{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Sleep Matters Podcast","title":"Parkinson’s, Practice Transition, & Discovering a New Path in Dental Sleep Medicine with Dr. Craig Harder","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":2327,"description":"In this episode, Dr. Craig Harder joins Dr. Erin Elliott and Jason Tierney to talk about the kind of career shift most dentists hope they never have to face, but every practice owner should be prepared for.\nAfter nearly 30 years in private practice, Dr. Harder was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. The diagnosis changed his timeline, his relationship with clinical dentistry, and the way he thought about identity, ownership, retirement, and what comes next.\nOur hosts explore what happens when dentistry is not just your job, but a major part of who you are. Dr. Harder shares what it felt like to sit in his car after receiving the diagnosis, how he moved from panic to planning, and how dental sleep medicine gave him a way to keep using his clinical mind when his hands could no longer carry the same load.\nThis episode is especially valuable for dentists who are nearing a transition, considering a shift in their schedule, dabbling in sleep medicine, or avoiding the hard planning conversations around disability, retirement, practice value, and life outside the operatory.\nWhat’s on the Menu:\nA Real Career Transition Story: Dr. Harder shares how he built a successful practice in Moses Lake, Washington, after purchasing it in 1996 and spending nearly 30 years in private practice.\nThe Diagnosis That Changed the Timeline: He walks through the early hand tremor, the essential tremor diagnosis, and the eventual Parkinson’s diagnosis that forced him to rethink how long he could continue practicing.\nWhen Dentistry Becomes Your Identity: Dr. Harder talks honestly about what it feels like to lose the version of yourself that was known as “the dentist” in your community.\nThe Three Emotional Stages After Diagnosis: He describes moving from selfishness to panic over his family and team, to finally accepting the diagnosis.\nWhy Sleep Medicine Became the Bridge: As hand skills became less reliable, Dr. Harder began shifting toward dental sleep medicine, telemedicine, sleep study...","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/52Qaaw05xuFHPCIyraqjh64o9mT1jbe9VlOf6cHLHwE/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8zMzg4/ZGE2MTI3YzQwNTcw/ZTRjYjBkNjBkZTZl/NTEyOC5wbmc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}