Congratulations on your upcoming surgery!
I was banded in December 2008....my experience was actually good....I didn't have ay discomfort from the CO2 that they put in during surgery - I guess I was lucky! I stayed overnight in the stepdown ICU ....and other than the fact that the O2 sensor kept going off and I got very little sleep (< 2 hours in 24) it wasn't as bad as I had expected. Make sure that you drink as much liquid as they tell you when they tell you....I had to drink 30cc every hour.....I should have gotten some Water in there too...because the only issue I had after surgery was the inability to "go to the bathroom" I was able to void, but not the "other" for SEVEN DAYS!!!! I was so uncomfortable I thought I would die! So don't wait until you're in trouble - call the office and ask for help...I should have taken Milk of Magnesia after a few days...but ended up taking the Pedilax strips that melt in your mouth because the liquid form required me to drink 300 of meds followed by 8 ounces of water - and THAT wasn't happening!