For those of you getting a SCS... don't fool yourself into thinking that once you get pain relief after the permanent implant you can return to doing everything that you did previously. Sure, you(as I did) can do all those things, but it may come at a price. I went back to doing all kinds of strenuous activities after my implant. Then, two and a half years later, all my pain returned. Out of the blue, just like that. The doc's best guess was that the paddle lead may have had some problem, possibly due to all the extra stretching and bending that I was doing. All I am saying is that please be careful. It's not worth losing that wonderful pain relief for some extra activities.