TWO KINDS OF FREEDOM

Dr. Birtch was affiliated with the Donwood Institute in Toronto. He has since passed away, however we feel that what he wrote for the "DONWOOD" newsletter during the time he was with them is very relevant to the alcoholic of today.

Following are his articles:TWO KINDS OF FREEDOM.

At Donwood we are concerned about two kinds of freedom. The first and most obvious is this. We are working toward freedom from a sick dependency on a chemical. When a person comes to Donwood he is usually no stranger to a feeling of bondage. He is a slave to a chemical, the servant of an uncontrolled desire. Many of the satisfactions and rewards of living are denied him because he is not free to pursue them. He is under the domination of a most demanding master. When a person is in this condition he may feel, "If only I could get free from my slavery to this chemical I could enjoy life again." But this is not necessarily true.

A person may achieve total abstinence and still be miserable. That is why our program has two sides. We work not just for "freedom from" but also for "freedom for". Our goal at Donwood is for the achievement of quality of health that is rich and rewarding. Freedom from the bondage is not complete until it issues in freedom to adopt a new life style that has its own built-in satisfactions. This freedom costs something too. There is a price to be paid. The price takes the form of daily choices and daily discipline. Simple things like exercise, diet, rest, development of stimulating interests, pursuit of social health with family and friends - these involve choices and self-disipline.

Yet for a person who assumes that freedom in simply doing what he wants to do when he wants to do it, it may be too great a price. Daily discipline may seem to be a denial of freedom.That is why it is important to decide what kind of freedom we are looking for.