Sandra, this site has an awesome collection of years of posts from many many people who have asked some of your questions (and even more questions)
When I found the site, I spent a lot of time searching through threads in sections that I needed answers. I found it very helpful, so I just wanted to suggest it, in case you haven't found that feature yet. There is a large section called "pre-op" here that will probably give you more info than you can handle
Good luck in your process of learning more and in deciding if WLS is right for you.