Originally Posted by
keepingthefaith 
He drinks all day, every day, and always "hides" it. Evenings are for a few drinks in the open along with the hidden drinking. Functional drunk, though it's getting to the point that some days are less so than others. Just when things seem to be really terrible he supposedly straightens up for while. I learned a long time ago that those aren't dry periods, just not hitting the booze "quite" so hard and heavy.
I lived with this situation myself. My AH would get buzzed everynight. But he still functioned and had a decent job and hobbies he enjoyed, such as gourmet cooking.
In October '07, he went on a three-week bender. Drop-dead drunk for 21 days straight. That was the beginning of the descent into complete insanity. Today, all that is left is a body that lives to ingest alcohol. And he no longer hides it. I don't think he even understands what is going on around him most of the time.
If your husband chooses to seek help, he doesn't have to end up the way mine did. Yes, there IS hope. But it's up to him to make that decision.
All I can tell you is, I have watched first-hand the progression of this disease. It does not get better; it gets worse. Worse than I ever imagined.