This week we're returning to the ongoing series about staying healthy on the job, when "on the job" in the wine industry often means drinking alcohol on a frequent basis, socializing for many hours a day, and indulging in luxurious meals.

The first two posts in the series considered two distinctly different perspectives: Victoria MacRae-Samuels, Vice President of Operations for Maker's Mark Bourbon, spoke about teamwork, moderation, and self-care, while Isabel Guilisasti, Marketing Director of Origin Wines at Viña Concha y Toro in Chile, emphasized the goal of selling wine, rather than drinking it.

This week we're shifting gears for a conversation with Tim Hanni -- Master of Wine (one of only 356 in the world), Certified Wine Educator, instructor at Napa Valley Wine Academy, and recovering alcoholic.

Hanni has been sober for 25 years and his perspective is, obviously, both informed and unique when it comes to maintaining a healthy lifestyle while working as a professional in the alcohol industry. Though Hanni is exceptionally articulate and candid about his experience, he maintains that he is far from alone in the struggle against over-consumption and lack of balance.

There's an abject ignorance around alcoholism and the dynamics of addiction, he said, "so rather than have a balance of people in one's life, you tend to gravitate to the people who have a problem with it, because no one wants to call anyone on it. It's about time that we remove the stigma and be able to say to someone, look, you have a problem."

What follows are excerpts from my conversation with Hanni, including how to overcome the stigma, the (redefined) job of wine experts, the neurochemistry of addiction, and recognizing alcoholism in yourself and others. I appreciate how open you are about being an MW who actually doesn't drink alcohol. Could you talk about that?

My alcoholism is something that I knew for a long, long time so I never really had an argument about that. I felt that it would be ripping a huge part out of my life to stop drinking. What I never fully got was what was the real cost to my joy and my happiness and most of all the relationships in my life that were all the result of my continuing to drink when I knew I couldn't control it.

I do taste wine and spit, and I've been sober for 25 years. [Not drinking wine] points to the question, what do wine experts really do? I can be expert about wine business and teach it, with zero need to drink whatsoever. If I were still drinking, it never would have occurred to me to investigate these topics. I found that a lot of my work has been very seriously up-leveled as a result of not being a participant in the consumption, and not having to defend my position of "I deem these wines to be the best."

You mentioned an ignorance around alcoholism and addiction. What do we need to know?

It's important to understand and become educated about phenomena and behaviors. The alcohol and drug user is going to get what they need regardless, and it shocks me that such a level of ignorance still exists around this.

There are a lot of forms of the disease that hit people in different ways, and that come on in different times in life. There's now a better understanding, especially of the neurochemistry of addiction. Once the brain starts to find that there's an external source of medication and analgesic relief, it stops producing certain chemicals, like serotonin and dopamine. The only way to feel better is by self-medication and you have to keep upping the dose. Therein lies the problem, not a lack of willpower.

Are there any conditions or behaviors that are unique to people in the wine industry? Has anything changed over time?

I don't think so. It doesn't matter if you're a retailer or winemaker or a doctor or a pilot, the behaviors and patterns are the same. The environment makes a difference in how it manifests and who you're hanging with and how you're justifying what you're doing. Being in the trade gives you an excuse to be around people who often share your predispositions.

I was a chef and working professionally in the industry. You get off at midnight, you're wired, then you go out with a bunch of people who are in the business because of the flexibility and the transient nature of restaurant work. It was a great place to be an alcoholic. There's a lot more professionalism now and a lot more structure, especially in the best restaurants.

What is your personal advice for maintaining balance while living the wine life? How do you make it work for you?

The long and the short of it is you cannot maintain functional relationships while you're using. You can't have balance without love, friendship, and caring in a functional way. I've done a lot of work on myself so that I can maintain and restore relationships. That's been a big part of things.

Something that throws everything balance-related into a tailspin is that emotional maturity and addiction are two separate concepts. The more you're using, the more you're acting out, so there's this paucity of emotional development, if you will.

Any suggestions for young people just starting out?

The first thing is understanding the disease aspect of alcoholism. It doesn't matter if you became an attorney or went into construction, if you have the genetic markers and the family history, then take a good look at your motives and whether you'll be able to maintain a safe degree of sobriety. The big challenge is that we don't usually think that far ahead.

There are all sorts of ways that you can seek help now, that are not necessarily total abstinence. Everyone has to find their personal program. You can't borrow someone else's because it looks more fun.