Where do you use painkillers instead of addressing the real cause?

Where in your life or work have you developed a ‘Nurofen habit’? Painkillers can make us feel better, but they mask symptoms rather than address the cause. The same can be said for all those behaviours and excuses we use to avoid tackling what’s really bothering us. Do they, in the end, make anything better?

An ear infection has put anti-inflammatory pills top of my mind. It was getting better, I thought. So there I was, perplexed at why my body gave me a firm NO to exercise when my throat and ears seemed fairly ok. How come I had no energy if I was largely well again?

Not taking my extra-strong Spanish prescription Ibuprofen (generic Nurofen) one evening gave me the answer: I wasn’t well at all. It made sense that my body was focused on fighting the infection and didn’t appreciate my attempt to lift weights.  The painkillers only tackled the inflammation, not the cause. To know how I was actually doing, I needed to put them aside.

• In life and work, we often know that there’s something fundamental that we need to address, but it’s oh-so-easy to fall into the ‘Nurofen trap’.

• Something that’s essential for us might be getting trampled on, but we make up excuses to avoid having a difficult conversation with a manager, colleague or partner.

• We might long to do something new and different, but instead we conform to what’s ‘expected’ of us, stick to the way it has ‘always been done’ or busily make up reasons for why the new way will not work.

Insecurity, stress and overwhelm might be eating us up inside, but we mask it with bravado, overwork or arrogance - or perhaps soothe ourselves with nightly bottles of wine.

At what point do you stop taking this kind of painkillers and instead go for the cause? Waiting long enough can result in ‘change by blow-up’ – a huge argument, a walk-out on the situation or even burn-out. Another route is to make a brave choice: investigate and address the root cause. The first step is likely to feel a bit scary, but how does it compare to the pain the ‘Nurofen habit’ is masking?

In what area is it time for you to stop reaching for your ‘painkillers’?