Which painkiller habit do you actually trust most when you're suffering?

The British medicine cabinet staple. Whether it's a banging hangover or a bad back, most of us quietly reach for the blister pack before anything else — even if we can't always remember the correct dose.

There's something deeply primal about pressing warmth against pain and waiting for it to surrender. From a classic rubber hot water bottle to those stick-on heat patches, this is the old-school remedy that refuses to retire.

Sometimes the most defiant health choice is refusing to push through it. Lying completely still and hoping your body sorts itself out is a legitimate strategy — don't let anyone tell you otherwise.

The physio will always tell you to move through the pain, and annoyingly they're often right. Gentle stretching or a short walk can loosen things up when rest just makes you stiffer and more miserable.

Deeply British, deeply inadvisable, and yet somehow still widely practised. Gritting your teeth and getting on with it isn't always heroic — but it does save you a GP appointment you'd have waited six weeks for anyway.