The mom and her baby take the spotlight in any breastfeeding story. After all, it’s their physical and emotional participation that leads one breastfeeding chapter to another.

Like any narrative, there are roles in a breastfeeding story that don’t usually share the limelight but are equally crucial in its unfolding. Take grandparents, for example, who may think they cannot contribute enough because of their age but continue to offer specific support to move the breastfeeding story forward.

Today, let’s honor the big things they do for the mom and baby one by one.

It may be mom’s first time to hold a baby, but it’s not the case for grandparents. Grandma has held her own many years back, so she knows exactly how to hold a newborn to ensure his or her safety and comfort.

This seemingly little gesture is a critical help, most especially to clueless parents who are also craving for proper rest and sleep.

With an extended family setup at home, it’s nearly impossible for grandparents to not be woken up in the middle of the night as the baby sends hunger cues through wailing. As mom continues to yawn while breastfeeding, grandparents stay awake a little longer to ensure that her young ones are safe and sound.

This is not to say that dads’ roles are downplayed in the story. Grandmas and grandpas volunteer for night shift knowing that the baby’s dad must go to work the following day.

When both mom and dad’s hands are full, grandparents are the extra pairs of hands that fulfill roles such as watching the baby, doing housework, or running errands. They do so wholeheartedly and indefinitely, or until mom can ease into her old routine back.

Grandparents love performing acts of service for their kids and grandkids, knowing that in doing so, they get to be the parents they were one more time.

There’s nothing more calming for a baby to be held close and be sung lullabies to during their sleeping time. There’s something so timeless and touching about grandparents’ lullabies.

The songs that grandparents sing, whether in their or the child’s native tongue, is a source of emotional connection that will help kids identify family. These hymns of love also automatically become a part of the baby’s childhood, and a cradle of nostalgia in the years to come.

For a mom, breastfeeding is not just physically exhausting; it can also be mentally and emotionally straining. Though a mom knows for sure that she’s doing a noble act of nourishing her child through breastfeeding, she also laments not being able to do the things she used to.

Grandparents can reassure their breastfeeding daughter that she is doing the best for her child, and while she doesn’t see herself fruitful or productive on a daily basis, she will definitely reap its rewards in the long run.

Though not as agile as they used to, devoted grandparents who offer their time and support are irreplaceable in the making of a remarkable breastfeeding story.

This post is sponsored by Natalac, the only lactation enhancer in the country proven effective by clinical studies. You can order Natalac online through Watsons or Southstar Drug.