When i went into WLS center in April my weight was 369lbs....They had me on the surgery table may 9th and I'm not going to lie the first week to 10 days you will be in pain...Try gas x for the shoulder pain.My first check up my weight was 332.Then things got crazy my surgeon left 2 cc in the band witch is not normal because of the swelling.I actually said good bye to the 300's in early July I had a month i lost 22 lbs followed by 17 that may sound great but i promise you that your going to be really sick.In August after WLS consulted with experts things slowed down to 10-12 pounds a month and i felt alot better.I hit 251lbs in October and today weighed in at 232 lbs.I read alot of post on here about not losing fast enough.If you can loose 1-3 lbs a week you are doing great and doing it the safe way.This surgery saved my life.I support the ban %100.If your thinking of getting the band you need to realize The band is a tool and if your willing to make life style changes it's a big help!If you expect the band to do all the work you will fail.I'm at the point i don't even count calories anymore because i trust the band.Any way good luck to all of you getting banded in the end it's worth it!