Interesting topic. I think that in a lot of ways, we humans are comforted by rituals. Or just something that can be a routine. For myself, usually this is in the form of some gaming. To take my mind off things. Or walking.
I have a massive headache and totally zone out. When something like that happens, what I really want to do is just to crawl into bed and lie there with my arm over my head nursing my headache.