Forceps are quite large, made of stainless steel and have curved ends - they look a bit like a large pair of kitchen tongs, which open out wide. Before they're put around your baby's head, the doctor will have to enlarge the opening by cutting through the tissue between the back of the vagina and the rectum, called an epistomy cut. As mentioned above, before this is done, you'll have had either an epidural or another form of pain relief, so you won't feel anything.