These days it's common to include a birth plan in your pre-baby preparations. A birth plan allows you to make choices about labor and delivery while you are still able to participate in decision making.

"The birth plan is an ideal way to communicate her preferences, so the mother-to-be can fully focus on the amazing process of birthing a baby," says Dr. Coral Slavin, doula and owner/director of Well-Rounded Maternity Center in Menomonee Falls, Wis.

But navigating a birth plan can be daunting. Here's an overview of each birth plan step.

This step includes choosing where to give birth, hospital or home, and who delivers the baby, an obstetrician or midwife.

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