Take two ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin or a store brand). Three hours later, if you still feel crummy, take two acetaminophen (Tylenol). By alternating the two kinds of painkillers, you can double your relief. It’s safe, as long as you take only the recommended dose of each and wait three hours in between, says Fred M. Eckel, Ph.D., a pharmacy professor at the University of North Carolina. If you’re taking another medication, such as a cold tablet, make sure it doesn’t contain either of these ingredients.

2. Your feet are killing you and you have more stores to hit before your holiday shopping is done.

Invest in a good pair of firm insoles, such as Dr. Scholl’s Gel Inserts, about $13, drugstores, to cushion your feet. Buy a pair and insert them right there in the mall if you can! Once you get home, take off your shoes and, while barefoot, roll your arch over a can of frozen juice for 5 to 10 minutes. The cold will reduce inflammation, and the massage will relax the muscles. Then soak your feet alternately in basins of warm (not hot) and cool (not cold) water.

3. You have serious indigestion.

Even if you don’t usually suffer from acid indigestion, holiday fare can bring on a bout. “Rich, fatty foods slow the emptying of the stomach,” explains David Peura, M.D., a gastroenter-ologist at the University of Virginia. Treat your indigestion with an antacid (Tums, Rolaids, Maalox or Gaviscon); prevent the case you anticipate getting at the office party with an H2-blocker, like Zantac or Tagamet. Or, if your holiday calendar includes several parties, you might want to go to the next level and try Prilosec OTC, which stops acid production for a full 24 hours. “Take it about a half hour before breakfast, and don’t exceed the recommended 14-day course,” cautions Dr. Peura.

4. You’re weepy, you can’t think straight and you keep nodding off.

Get to bed earlier, even if it means cutting back on your to-do list — or insisting that family members lend a hand. “When you add things like shopping, wrapping and decorating to your daily duties, you have to forget some of the things you usually do,” points out Georgia Witkin, Ph.D., a clinical psychologist at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. Otherwise, you’re setting yourself up for illness (not to mention a grumpy mood). If you’re too wired to fall asleep before bed, give yourself 20 minutes to decompress. Meditate, listen to music (“Silent Night,” not “Jingle Bell Rock”) or read something light.

5. You ache all over and have a fever of 102 degrees. Surely you’re not coming down with the flu.

Don’t wait to find out — call your doctor right away. If it is the flu, a number of prescription antiviral medications can cut your symptoms short. But you need to start taking one of these drugs within 48 hours of when the symptoms begin, stresses Christine Laine, M.D., an internist at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia. Meanwhile, drink lots of water, use saline nasal drops to relieve congestion and run a humidifier.

6. You have to spend seven hours in the car. And once you get to your in-laws’ place, you’ll be sleeping on a foldout sofa. How will your back survive?

Prolonged travel and poor mattresses can cause a problem even if you didn’t have one before. On your trip, stop every couple of hours and walk around. A folding bed board can firm up that sofa bed. Look for one at online medical-supply companies. Portable twin-size bed boards, which fold down to 15” x 24” (leaving plenty of room in the car for gifts), sell for about $25. Buy two for a double mattress.

7. Last year, you burned yourself lifting the roasting pan out of the oven and you don’t want a repeat performance.

This year, wear a pair of longer barbecue mitts instead of regular oven mitts, advises Meri-K Appy, president of the Home Safety Council. That way, you’ll protect your arms as well as your hands.