Derrion Roberts

“I’d always been told I wasn’t a suitable candidate for laser eye surgery because of my extremely high astigmatism of -9 in my right eye and -5 in my left eye. But I had also heard that advances in technology were improving all the time, so with this in mind I scheduled a consultation with Dr Tirado and his team who came via recommendation of several friends. What I learned was both very surprising and extremely encouraging. I was at the clinic for a couple of hours and underwent a number of different and extensive tests, the outcome being that I was a suitable candidate for surgery.

Dr Tirado talked me through what was going to happen should I choose to proceed, what he needed me to do pre-op and re-assured me of the potential risks, which I felt were by far outweighed by the potential gain. Tests over I booked in for my surgery and a date was given for the following week, On the day of the procedure Dr Tirado had prescribed a single dose of Lexatin to be taken a couple of hours prior to the operation which is a class of relaxing medication to calm any potential apprehension.

I traveled to the Malaga clinic and upon arrival filled out all relevant consent forms and was asked to take a seat and await my turn. Once called I was dressed in a surgical gown, boots a net put over my hair and was asked to take a seat whilst several rounds of anaesthetic eye drops where administered. After a few minutes I was led into a darkened room where the procedure was to be performed. I laid down on a bench with a circular opening for my head to rest in. My right eye was “clamped” open first this was the most uncomfortable part of the whole procedure as pressure is applied to the eye and while it does not hurt thanks to the anaesthetic, it’s a slight bit uncomfortable. I was told to focus on a green light above me while the laser tracked my eye until it was in position.

Then in around 10/15 seconds it worked it’s magic and I mean magic. I could smell a kind of burning smell and hear the laser clicking, but I couldn’t feel a thing. Before I knew it the surgeon said we were done and was moving on to the other eye. It seemed like the procedure for the left eye went more quickly, probably because I knew what to expect. The whole thing start to finish took less than 15 minutes and as soon as I stood up I could tell that something had changed. Things were a bit blurry but I could already see better than I’d been able too since as long as I can remember, Amazing.

I returned to the waiting room unaided and was advised to sit, relax and close my eyes. After 45 minutes I was then taken through to Dr Tirado who conducted a brief eye test using just the chart, I was amazed as to just how well I could see so soon after the procedure, my aftercare routine was explained and everything I needed was contained in a kit that I had already been given. I kept my eyes shut for pretty much the whole journey home, I was aware that my eyes were very sensitive to the light.

As soon as we got home I relaxed in a darkened room with my eyes closed for a few hours as advised by the clinic, As the anaesthetic wore off my eyes started to feel nothing more than a little uncomfortable, my eyelids felt heavy and I could barely open my eyes at all. They were watering heavily. This was all perfectly normal and totally expected, and I knew it would only last a couple of hours. I had heard of some people needing pain killers at this point, personally I found I didn’t need them as it was nothing more than uncomfortable.

My first post surgery check up was the following day, after carrying out various tests, and from the results of the previous day I was told of the results that had been achieved. My left -5 astigmatism had been Neutralised and my right -9 had been dropped to -2. For someone that has been so visually impaired for their entire life these results were truly amazing and truly life changing.

Having never driven a car or watched tv without spectacles this was now possible. And was only getting better on a daily basis. If you have been considering laser corrective eye surgery but have been worried about the pain or recovery, let me ease your mind. The surgery itself was painless and recovery was nothing more than uncomfortable. Do it now! You could have a lifetime of perfect vision ahead.”