Hannah Gantt, LPCC
The opioid crisis didn’t begin overnight. It was the result of decades of decisions in our healthcare system that put profits before people. As Dr. Zaid Fadul, Chief Medical Officer at Better U, explains in this video, it started with a seemingly well-intentioned idea: treating pain as the fifth vital sign.
In the late 1990s, hospitals began asking patients to rate their pain during every visit, just like their temperature or blood pressure. While it sounded compassionate, this policy led to a dangerous cascade: healthcare providers were pressured to quickly reduce reported pain, or risk losing funding and receiving poor patient satisfaction scores.
Pharmaceutical companies seized the opportunity, aggressively promoting opioids like oxycodone and hydrocodone as “safe and non-addictive” solutions for pain. But the science never supported long-term use, and now, we’re left with devastating consequences:
This wasn’t a system failure; it was a preventable public health tragedy.
Pain is deeply personal. It’s physical, emotional, and even existential. Yet for years, we treated it like a box to check. Our healthcare system became addicted to quick fixes, rather than root-cause healing.
Here’s what we know now:
It’s time for a smarter, more compassionate approach to chronic pain.
We believe healing should never come with a hidden cost. That’s why our model combines science-backed treatments with a whole-person approach to care. Here are five ways to manage pain safely:
Our prescription-strength pain cream blends ketamine, lidocaine, ketoprofen, and methocarbamol, delivering local relief for nerve pain, inflammation, and muscle tension without systemic side effects or addiction risks. Learn more about our cream here.
Chiropractic care, massage, physical therapy, and acupuncture work by addressing the source of pain, not just masking it. They help the body restore balance and function over time.
Practices like yoga, journaling, breathwork, and meditation reduce stress, which can significantly lower pain perception. Mental calm = physical relief.
Sleep quality, movement, and nutrition all influence inflammation and pain signaling. Small changes in daily habits can lead to significant improvements over time.
Pain is often linked to unaddressed anxiety, depression, or PTSD. Therapy and peer support groups not only ease emotional burden, but they can also lower physical pain thresholds.
These integrative solutions don’t make billions for pharmaceutical companies. And they don’t fit into 10-minute insurance-covered appointments tied to pain satisfaction surveys. But they work.
Better U was founded to change this narrative, merging clinical innovation with compassionate, individualized care.
We can no longer afford to treat pain with shortcuts. The opioid epidemic showed us what happens when we ignore long-term consequences in favor of immediate comfort.
If you or someone you love is living with chronic pain or struggling with opioid dependency, know this: there are better options. And real healing is possible with the right support.
Visit betterucare.com to explore non-opioid pain solutions, ketamine therapy options, and holistic mental health care that puts your well-being first.
