Can I recover apps (with progress) and contacts lost after updating?

After updating to iOS5.0.1 on my iPhone 3G, all of my apps and contacts disappeared. I can't recover a recent backup. I thought everything was synced and intact before updating. Obviously not. Is there any way of recovering my lost apps with current progress to date on my games, as well as my contacts? Can any of this be found somewhere on my Mac computer where I can revert back to my former operating system and recover everything or is it possible to have a technical support person come and figure it out? I'm not a computer wizard, so help would really be appreciated!