NurtureNest Therapy & Coaching

29/09/2025

✨ We are thrilled to announce that we have re-branded! We are now NurtureNest Therapy & Coaching, formerly Parenting Insight.

Since 2016, our main focus has been supporting the emotional well-being of 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧, 𝐚𝐝𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬 and the 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 who care for them.

📍We are fueled by our commitment, expertise and extensive experience in child and adolescent psychology, to guide you in creating safe, welcoming spaces where children feel seen, and parents feel empowered.

Our family-focused approach helps you build stronger connections at home, school, and in the community; laying the foundation for lifelong resilience and well-being.

Whether navigating child developmental milestones, behavioral challenges, emotional struggles, or simply seeking guidance through a new life stage, we walk alongside you. Let's connect → 📩 nurturenesttc@gmail.com, DM or 📞 +254-729-809-667

📍 Learn more about us → https://lnkd.in/djcqUnHG

𝑵𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑪𝒉𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒅 - 𝑭𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑴𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒍 𝑯𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒕𝒉!

18/09/2025

Need to report a child in danger or distress?

Call 116
Kenya’s National Child Helpline: free, confidential, and available 24/7.

Who can call?
A child, parent, teacher, neighbour, etc

Dial 116 anytime, anywhere. Your call can save life.
Let’s protect every child together.

05/09/2025

Understanding looks like every day scenarios.

You let your 3year old know that they can have the promised two cookies.

They excitedly pick the first cookie and munch away.

They make a subsequent pick, emerge with half a cookie and munch away.

Then another pick, another half cookie and the sheer delight continues - the simple joys of childhood sugar treats!

Their go for the next pick but you let them know that they have had their two cookies.

They look at you, confused.

“I’ve only had one,” they say.

You let them know that they’ve had two cookies; the first full cookie and the subsequent two halves, which make one full cookie.
You go an extra mile and break a full cookie into half, put the two halves together to demonstrate how two halves makes one full cookie.

At this point, they get teary, the sound of betrayal in the crying.

“I only ate one,” they repeat.

Child development is remembering that many concepts that may be common sense to a fully developed adult mind, are not so to a child.

As an adult, you understand that two halves make one. This is a brain development milestone that has not yet been achieved at age 3.

Remember at what age you learnt fractions in school? Yup, not at kindergarten.

At age 3, a child’s brain is still learning the concept of numbers, quantity and what they represent; that three apples are more than one and even then, they need to see the apples and physically count to reach this conclusion. Their minds are not yet able to grasp abstract concepts; that pieces can come together to make a whole.

Fractions is a complex concept. An abstract concept.
A 3 year old is yet to get to this milestone - usually from around age 7 and beyond.

Parenting through child-development conscious eyes, is understanding that in your child’s mind, the two halves did not have any relation to one another.
They did not come together to make one whole cookie.
Each cookie eating experience was an autonomous moment - a simple moment of joy, not a fraction conscious moment.

A 3 year old is only able to understand a cookie by how it looks ‘whole’ not by adding pieces together to create the whole.

In their mind, they only ate one cookie - the one that was whole, looked whole like a 'cookie should'.

The pieces; well those were just miraculous pieces of pure joy that neither counted nor added up.

🌞 The funniest, cutest part? They could keep eating bits of cookies and their minds would still not tally those as cookies eaten.

♦️ How can you resolve this scenario?
Let them have another ‘whole’ piece, because that’s what keeping your word in this case would look like. That’s what the second piece is supposed to look like to count as a second cookie.

Nothing beats watching and understanding children.

Why do I love working with children? Because watching them is seeing child development unfold - and it's magical!🌞

Happy Parenting 😊

13/05/2025

Does your teen pull away leaving you second guessing your parenting?

Do you wonder where your once open, bubbly, chatty child disappeared to?

Teenagers pulling away is a developmental milestone.
During adolescence, the teen brain and identity evolves causing them to seek independence. This distancing isn’t a rejection of our love; it’s a crucial step toward adulthood.

Here are a few reasons for the pull-away:
📌Identity formation: they are figuring out who they are outside of their parents' influence.

📌Autonomy needs: the need for space to make decisions and learn from experiences.

📌Social shift: friendships become central as they practice relationships outside the family.

📌Brain development: the prefrontal cortex, that's responsible for decision-making, is more developed in teenagehood than in younger years. This gives them more awareness to question and assess life around them; creating the desire to reach own conclusions.

It is an important milestone that:
🔸 Encourages decision-making and problem-solving
🔸Builds confidence and self-reliance
🔸Prepares them for adult responsibilities
🔸Strengthens the parent-teen relationship in the long run

❓ Have you met adults who consult their parents in everything?
❓ Or adults stuck in childhood family identities and roles?
If you have, then you have glimpsed into what a missed teenage milestone can look like. It is not the ideal picture.

Teens who are not allowed to experience this stage miss the opportunity to form an autonomous identity outside of the childhood attachments to parents and caregivers; to form an independent sense of self that's necessary for adulthood.

Functioning as healthy adults only happens when we understand the importance of different child development milestones and support the unfolding of the same.

Does this mean that it is wrong to reach out to your teen for bonding? No.
It's natural for parents to feel the urge to reach out and re-establish closeness.

However, giving time and space and trusting that as they navigate independence, they will find their way back to us is a decision that calls for restraint.

Ways to support the push-pull phase:
🔷️ Respect their growing independence - Allow them to make age-appropriate decisions.

🔷️ Maintain open communication - Stay approachable so they feel safe coming to you.

🔷️ Set healthy boundaries - Balance freedom with guidance to ensure safety.

🔷️ Encourage problem-solving - Let them make mistakes and learn from them.

🔷️ Show unwavering support - Remind them you’re always there, no matter what.

Parenting teens is about learning how to let go with love and trust; remembering that even when they push us away, they still need us!

Teens don’t push us away because they don’t love us; they do so because they are learning to 'stand on their own'.

Happy Parenting 😊

05/05/2025

The Gift of Boredom: Why Kids Need Unstructured Time

In today’s fast-paced world, we often feel pressured to keep our children constantly engaged with structured activities, screens, and endless entertainment.

Boredom often gets a bad reputation; sometimes confused for neglect or disengaged parenting.

However, boredom is actually a gift for children’s development and mental health. It is essential for the development of skills such as critical thinking, self initiative, emotional regulation, courage to create and explore, self awareness, attunement to nature and surroundings; it's essential for the development of many skills that children need throughout their lives - skills that even we, the adults, continue to need.

When children feel bored and have unstructured time, they:
🧠 Develop problem-solving skills - They learn to self entertain.

🎨 Boost creativity - Their imagination takes over, leading to innovative play.

💪 Build resilience - They learn to sit with discomfort and find own solutions.

Parents can support boredom by:
📌Resisting the urge to “fix” it
Instead of offering solutions, perhaps try saying: "I wonder what you’ll come up with!"

📌 Creating a boredom-friendly environment
Provide open-ended materials like art supplies, building blocks, and outdoor spaces.
Children do not need expensive things, improvised items such as utensils, empty carton boxes, clothing, can come in handy.
One can hardly go wrong with art materials; crocheting, kneating, stitching, painting, drawing, woodwork, pottery, weaving, basketry - the list goes on.

📌Limiting screen time
Too much passive entertainment reduces the ability for self-directed play and if done in excess, creates a mind that's dependent on external stimuli for activation; a mind that overly consumes but rarely creates.

📌Modelling unstructured time
Let children see us having our own downtime; reading, reflecting, or creating alongside them.

Have you seen creativity bloom when your child was bored?
Share in the comments section below so we can learn from each other.

🧠🧠Remember, boredom isn’t the absence of something, it’s the presence of possibilities.

Happy Parenting! 😊

17/10/2024

INTERSEX CHILDREN CONVERSATION 03: 46 XX Male.

Also known as XX Testicular Disorder of S*x Development (DSD)

This is a rare condition that happens during development in the womb whereby a baby who has two X chromosomes (XX) meaning they are female, develops male characteristics due to a genetic anomaly. They therefore often appear male.

The anomaly is caused by an abnormal exchange of genetic material whereby male-determining genetic material from a Y (male) chromosome translocates on one of the X (female) chromosomes, thus triggering development of male characteristics despite baby being chromosomally female (XX).

Most babies born as 46 XX male experience normal male puberty; a few may require hormone therapy (testosterone).

Diagnosis is often missed because babies typically look male at birth unless the baby is:

- born with ambiguous genitalia (ge****ls not clearly formed as male or female)

- concerns arise during changes in puberty

- infertility is experienced in adulthood

- genetic testing is done during infancy or childhood

Some characteristics:

1. Baby is chromosomally female but physically develops as male

2. Babies have te**es due to the presence of the genes involved in male s*x determination

3. The te**es may be located in the sc***um (as should be), but in some cases might be undescended.

4. Babies often have normal external male genitalia at birth; a p***s, sc***um, and te**es and look no different from a biologically male baby. A minority have ambiguous genitalia.

5. Despite being chromosomally female (XX), these babies do not have female internal reproductive structures e.g. ovaries, uterus, or fallopian tubes because the male development process suppresses female reproductive organ formation.

6. During puberty, these children generally develop typical male secondary characteristics: facial and body hair, voice deepening, increased muscle mass etc.
- These developments occur because the te**es produce testosterone which is responsible for driving male puberty.

7. Small or undeveloped te**es and infertility.

The lack of the Y chromosome (which is crucial for normal s***m production) makes their te**es incapable of producing s***m and if any, may not produce enough functioning s***m leading to infertility.

8. Some may develop enlargement of breast tissue during adolescence (gynecomastia) due to imbalances between testosterone and estrogen levels, or reduced testosterone production by the te**es. Testosterone hormonal therapy may be recommended by a doctor.

• Most 46 XX male children are raised as boys and identify as male due to their often normal male physical characteristics.

• Gender identity is usually consistent with male development.
- It is important to remember that development is on a spectrum and individual children’s developmental experiences are unique based on each child’s hormonal proportions, physical characteristics etc.

11. 46 XX male children may have normal or slightly reduced levels of testosterone compared to typical boys. Reduced testosterone production can lead to slightly less masculinization in puberty. A doctor is usually able to assess and determine if testosterone therapy is necessary at onset of puberty

Treatment:

Treatment focuses on addressing any health or developmental concerns such as:

• Testosterone supplementation if natural testosterone levels are low, especially during puberty.

• Surgery may be required in cases of undescended te**es to bring them into the sc***um. Undescended te**es pose a higher risk for cancer. Surgery may be recommended to reduce cancer risk and for cosmetic reasons.

• Psychological support to help each child adjust to any changes and lead a normal, healthy life.

• Fertility counseling for adult 46 XX men wishing to have children, though fertility treatment options may sometimes be limited due to the absence of s***m production. Other options can be explored.

I hope this adds to the awareness and knowledge on inters*x children!

Stay tuned for more.

Happy Informed Parenting!

03/10/2024

INTERSEX CHILDREN CONVERSATION 02: TURNER SYNDROME (XO)

Inters*x is a biological gender during development in the womb.
There are three biological genders at birth. A baby could be born a boy, girl or inters*x.
Between 300,000 - 700,000 inters*x persons reside in Kenya.

During in-utero development, a baby gets 23 chromosomes from each parent making a total of 46 chromosomes. One of these chromosomal pair is the s*x chromosome; which if XY makes a boy and if XX makes a girl.
Sometimes during this developmental process, partial or complete deletion of one of the X s*x chromosome in a female baby may occur; hence XO known as Turner Syndrome.

Turner Syndrome shows up differently in different females.

Some of the common symptoms include (but not exclusive or limited to Turner):
- short stature
- broad chest and shoulders
- short and stubby hands and feet
- low hairline, low-set ears
- congenital heart anomalies
- infertility
- some learning difficulties

Mosaic Turner Syndrome can also occur whereby a baby has a mix; with some of the cells having two s*x chromosomes (XX) and others having only one (XO) - hence the term mosaic. Mosaic may show less visible symptoms than non-mosaic.

1 in every 2500 live baby girls is born with Turner. We need to share information and bring awareness.

As with Klinefelter, support for Turner is also multifaceted and is dependent on individual needs. This may include medical tests and assessments by an endocrinologist, heart surgery if born with a congenital heart disease, introduction of growth hormones and mental health support.

📢📢📢
📌Being XO is not a death sentence.
They are many XO girls, teens and adult women successfully going about daily life as seen in videos linked below.
📌Women with Turner syndrome are genotypically and phenotypically female I.e 100% female both genetically and physiologically.
📌Growth hormone may be prescribed by a doctor to help girls with Turner grow to their individual optimum (an endocrinologist is the doctor to see). Where possible, early intervention is recommended to aid in growth.
📌Most children if offered learning and social support are able to go through learning and life fairly normally.

As always, this is one more reason to desist from body stereotyping and body shaming. People look different for different reasons. Different is still normal. Different is perfect.

Amy's journey:
https://youtu.be/YdQFE4F7skg?feature=shared

What parental support looks like:
https://youtu.be/6liRnsO-05Q?feature=shared

Happy children:
https://youtu.be/VoJFs7ExYT4?feature=shared

Happy Thursday!

Links:https://www.turnersyndrome.org/learning-and-behaviorWe are 5 sisters and we love to make music together! Full story below!BUY OUR PIANO COURSE - https:...

23/09/2024

INTERSEX CHILDREN CONVERSATION 01: KLEINFELTER SYNDROME (XXY)

Inters*x is a biological gender during development in the womb.
There are three biological genders at birth. A baby could be born a boy, girl or inters*x.
Between 300,000 - 700,000 inters*x persons reside in Kenya.

During in-utero development, a baby gets 23 chromosomes from each parent making a total of 46 chromosomes in each of us. One of the Chromosomal pair is the s*x chromosome; which if XX makes a girl and if XY makes a boy.
Sometimes during this developmental process, a s*x chromosome pairing abnormality occurs causing a male baby to have an extra X chromosome; hence XXY.

Sometimes this can be detected during prenatal checks, but for most boys, this only comes to light during puberty, when certain adolescent features seem delayed or raise concern.

Symptoms/Characteristics of Klinefelter include but not limited to:
- smaller muscles and decreased muscle tone
- language development delays and learning difficulties
- typically taller than average, often visible after puberty
- low levels of testosterone
- smaller te**es and p***s
- decreased body hair
- breast growth (gynaecomastia) / man b***s
- infertility in over 90% of individuals
- low mood, anxiety, irritability
- low energy levels
- some cognitive difficulties (often similar to adhd)

Support for Klinefelter is multifaceted and depends on age. These may include, medical tests and assessments by an endocrinologist, speech therapy, physiotherapy, introduction of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) at puberty and mental health support.

Due to infertility, Testicular s***ms extraction (TES) can also be done to allow those who wish to have biological children to do so. The success rate of this varies from person to person.

Keep in mind that:
- Even amongst boys/men with Klinefelter, the symptoms may vary with some showing very few symptoms. The magnitude of impact physically and mentally may differ from one person to another and so would intervention approaches.

- Testosterone replacement therapy is only given upon onset of puberty and not earlier. Timely intervention is helpful as the testosterone can support normal physical development in boys as well as alleviate some of the mental health impact of low testosterone.

- Man b***s are NOT always caused by Klinefelter and can be due to other reasons e.g. obesity, medicine side effects e.g some ARVs, hormonal imbalance, sometimes a brain tumor etc. Above characteristics are not singularly representing of XXY. It's important to see an endocrinologist who usually carries out blood, hormonal and s***ms count tests to conclude if one has Klinefelter or not.

📢📢📢
📌Being XXY is not a death sentence.
They are many XXY boys, teens and adult men successfully going about daily life as seen in videos linked below.
📌Most children if offered learning and social support are able to go through life as usual.
📌Most adolescents if started of Testosterone Replacement Therapy (TRT) at onset of puberty are able to develop normally as well as mentally cope better.
📌Men with Klinefelter syndrome are genotypically and phenotypically male I.e 100% male both genetically and physiologically. The man b***s and smaller muscles tone is due to low testosterone which is responsible for the masculine body structure, frame and strength. These can be corrected through testosterone therapy. Surgery can be done to correct the gynaecomastia and continued TRT to keep testosterone within healthy range.
📌Most people with Klinefelter are visual learners and have photographic memories. They are also very good with their hands and may veer towards careers in art, architecture, farming, music etc. This is not cast on stone and there is no limit to what they can do!

1 in every 500-600 boys are born with Klinefelter. We need to share information and bring awareness.

As always, I reiterate that this is one more reason to cease body stereotypes and body shaming. People look different for different reasons. Different is still normal. Different is perfect.

🐅 What parental support looks like:
https://youtu.be/JZRKOUdToUs?feature=shared
https://youtu.be/o9d7nMPnNJU?feature=shared

🐅 A ted talk by an XXY male speaker:
https://youtu.be/zNlm1eFjArU?feature=shared

🐅 A channel with shared XXY experiences I would recommend: 'Living with XXY'.
https://youtu.be/uYrD1MA_DQY?feature=shared
https://youtu.be/OaAmSZsTEm4?feature=shared
https://youtu.be/SXUesXPqm0c?feature=shared

Happy Monday!

When Gareth and his wife decided to have a family in 2017, they learned about a genetic condition called Klinefelter Syndrome or XXY. Gareth speaks about som...