My best friend is an alcoholic

My father drank himself to death.
I hope your friend realizes what he's doing to himself and those who love him.

Sadly, you can’t force someone into sobriety. They have to really want it, and even then it’s not an easy task

My oldest friend drank himself to death. A brilliant, high functioning guy who basically never stopped drinking. Pancreatic failure killed him at 49

He would stop drinking every year for Lent. I'd tell him he got over the shakes on Holy Thursday

Personally, I don't know the situation and I'm going on the fact that you do. The reasons why this is happening are also important. Perhaps it's something that been happening in a spiral and your friend doesn't know what's happening. I'm the sort of people that does overthink. On itself not dangerous but it surely would have grown into a depression if I didn't know about it yet. Life brings opportunities and when the person isn't acting on them one can deduce that his or her mind is somewhere else. Like it is settled into the world it has created itself. The person in his or her thoughts feels safe there and one needs to mirror the appaling decline first to them. It won't help anyone who truly loves him or her, and that's one sure fact already

All you can do is be there for him. Something deep inside him has to change before he can get sober. It's out of your control.

I know of someone who was on a collision course. His family and friends staged an intervention. Although I realize that the first doesn't always stick, I'm glad.

I watched a man die from cirrhosis. It took about a year and a half. Given the choice I’d choose crucifixion of cirrhosis in a heartbeat. Ironically, with cirrhosis one dies of thirst.

I'm sorry hun. Does he know that you are really hurting for him and afraid to lose him?

When it comes to someone else's alcoholism, the only thing you can do is save yourself from falling victim to someone else's problem, which is NOT your's to solve. Stop trying to solve it!

Get him to talk to find out why he drinks, get him to acknowledge the pain he's trying to numb and get him to confront it, that is often the first step.