Editing Pregnancy (section)

== Final Consultation ==

We had one last consultation the day before our scheduled induction. Our obstetrician checked Julie's cervix for dilation. There was none but it was soft apparently. Checking online, the number of branches for delivery are large. Tail events cause most of the choices of significance.

Regardless, here is the process we were told to expect:

# Julie and I will be at the hospital at Mar 7 morning
# Julie will be given drugs to begin dilation
# By the evening of Mar 7, she should have dilated enough to receive a [https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/23925-foley-bulb-induction Foley bulb] device<ref name=foley-balloon/> that will mechanically dilate her further
# By the morning of Mar 8, she should be ready to receive the final induction drugs, Pitocin
# By the afternoon of Mar 8, she should be delivering vaginally

This is the happy-path plan, of course, but the branches experience combinatorial explosion.

=== Pain Management ===

One of the things that I wanted was that this should be as comfortable a process for Julie as possible. The epidural fentanyl injection is only possible immediately before/during delivery, but there can be quite a bit of discomfort with the Foley bulb<ref name=foley-balloon/>. And considering that's during the night, pain relief is required to ensure Julie is well rested.

Fortunately, our obstetrician reassured us that pain medication will be delivered via IV for the Foley bulb<ref name=foley-balloon/> and then the rest of the delivery-facing stuff is standard.