Comment by nkrisc

It is a cultural difference.

> In my case headaches are usually caused by sleep deprivation causing high sensitivity to external stimuli, muscle tension, dehydration, or some combination of that. So I'll first try to take a nap and/or stick to low-stimuli environments, have a good stretch and/or heated up massage pillow for the neck, and make a quick home-made oral rehydration solution with some salt and sugar. That usually alleviates most if not all of the pain.

Most Americans aren’t allowed to take naps at work or leave for some low-stimuli environment while on the clock. If they take time off to do those things, they aren’t getting paid. So why do Americans take more painkillers? Because they can’t afford to not do so.

So what’s the cultural aspect? That for some reason Americans find this preferable to socialized healthcare.