I would have to almost completely disagree with you, mate. You ask the attempt to brush your teeth before a shower and then connect that with a lack of freedom because of subconscious motives. That simply isn't true. Freedom implies that you can decide to brush your teeth before a shower or you can decide not to brush your teeth before a shower.
I would argue that freedom is a state of being, not an illusion.
I don't mean doing it one time on one aspect of your life, I mean to say that we have a habitual way of living that is so automated that it's something we don't even think to question. Even if we do question it, making a permanent change is much harder than we anticipate. You may brush your teeth first on day 1 and day 2, but there is a pretty good chance that by day 3 you will be in the shower then remember you were supposed to clean your teeth first, because your habits are extremely hard to break.
Deciding to make a change is not freedom, freedom is realisation of change. A slave can decide s/he wants to be free of their masters control, but unless s/he can make it so, s/he is not.