Occasional drinking
Alcohol abuse begins with so-called occasional, or episodic drinking. This is what we define as "moderate" drinking or casual inebriety (the common expression: "I drink just like everyone when I'm on holiday"). That is when alcohol is taken no more than once a month, during non-working hours and only for a specific occasion, the doses are small and do not cause noticeable intoxication. The person is still able to control the amount of alcohol taken, his own behavior, speech, movements, gesture, etc. Accidentally the person may find himself drunk, but this happens rarely, and during the "sober" periods the person doesn't crave for alcohol.
However, the trickery of the disease is that already at this stage the body gradually develops addiction to alcohol. With the lapse of time, the usual doses cease to cause the expected effect, so the drinker feels the need to increase them. In the medical language, this is called the increase of tolerance.
Addiction medicine specialists are also familiar with the phenomenon of "weekend alcoholism", when after a busy week at work a person does not find another way to relax rather than to have a sit with friends over a bottle of alcohol.
Although on working days the person may have no desire to drink, in his subconscious mind adverse associations are being formed: a day off means a drinking session, meeting friends - too. Due to this habit, tolerance to alcohol inevitably grows.