Phase 1 - social drinking

• drinking is a pleasure;
• increased tolerance and desire for alcohol;

Phase 2 - warning

• looking for opportunities to drink;
• initiating drinking rounds;
• feeling better after drinking;
• "life and soul of the party";
• alcohol brings relief, relieves tension;
• drinking ends with a blackout;
• hidden drinking attempts when alone, to relieve hangover symptoms;

Phase 3 - critical

• remorse, "moral hangover";
• "hair of the dog" brings relief;
• neglecting the family;
• marital conflicts;
• absence from work;
• justifying drinking by numerous [social] occasions;
• increase of aggressiveness, in trouble with the law;
• irregular eating;
• neglecting one’s own appearance;
• libido disorders;
• drinking binges alternating with periods of total abstinence to improve health and prove "strong will";
• taking oaths of abstinence;
• sense of emptiness and helplessness;

Phase 4 - chronic

• periods of prolonged drunkenness;
• morning drinking - "giant hangover";
• getting drunk alone;
• decrease in alcohol tolerance;
• reaching for non-consumable alcohol forms;
• breakup of family ties;
• taking things from home to sell and stealing - to get alcohol;
• professional and social debasement;
• alcohol dementia - "secondary illiteracy";
• drinking becomes the only goal in life;
• alcohol psychosis - "delirium";
• alcoholic epilepsy;
• somatic diseases - polyneuropathy, liver cirrhosis;
• extreme exhaustion;