Celebrating Parents with a Million Acts of Love

There’s nothing like a child’s love to make you feel real. When your baby locks eyes on yours for the first time, there’s that spark of connection. They wrap those tiny arms around your neck and you’re flooded with unparalleled joy. That first “I love you”? It cracks your heart right open.

And yet, real doesn’t equate to happiness or perfection. Being a parent is real. Dirty diapers and scraped knees are a given. The books prepare you for that stuff. But nothing in a book prepares you for that lonely feeling of “am I the only person awake in the entire world?” when you’re rocking a fussy baby at 3 a.m. Or the helplessness you feel when a classmate has been mean to your child.

Or the feelings of overwhelm that come with parenting through a pandemic.

It’s hard enough to manage Zoom classes for school-age children and changing diapers while on a video call with coworkers. It’s that much harder doing these things without a network of support. So many parents have felt isolated from the people they rely on for encouragement and empathy. In fact, a Motherly survey recently showed that 93 percent of mothers reported feeling burned out at least occasionally, and the pandemic left most mothers — 73 percent — feeling like they were failing to fulfill expectations for their family.*

Parents are made from love. It’s the only force strong enough to help people persevere when things get dicey. After such a difficult year, Pampers wants to show support to parents and remind them of their infinite capacity for love. In honor of Mother’s Day on May 9, Pampers, with brand advocate Shay Mitchell, is uplifting parents with a “Million Acts of Love” to inspire them when they need it most.

Starting this week, you can help share Acts of Love across social media platforms, including Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and TikTok. Sample Acts include Pinterest “CouPins” to gift mom with an afternoon nap or a day off diaper duty, and words of encouragement targeted to moms who are pulling the night shift with their little ones and scrolling Facebook to stay awake.

“We want to continue to shine a light on the power of parents’ love and remind them that they aren’t alone,” said Mark Christenson, father of two and Vice President, North America Baby Care. “Lifting up parents and supporting the happy, healthy development of babies is at the heart of our work, and we will continue to show support for parents through acts of love throughout the year.”

To support the launch of #MillionActsOfLove, Pampers is debuting a new film. Using “The Velveteen Rabbit” as inspiration, the film looks at the parenting journey while recognizing that it’s the challenges of parenting that reveal what parents are truly made of — love.