One of the symptoms is an uncontrollable desire to drink. Alcoholism is a progressive disease. The only method for arresting alcoholism is total abstinence. It is also a lifetime disease. Most authorities agree that even after years of sobriety, alcoholics can never again control their drinking once they start.
Alcoholics become physically and emotionally dependent on the drug.
They feel sick and unable to function without it. So great are the physical changes caused by alcohol that a physically dependent drinker can undergo convulsions when they try to quit. Excessive drinking over a period of years damages the liver, muscles and bones, pancreas, intestines, heart and brain. Much of the damage is irreversible. Brain cells are not replaceable.