Parenting While Healing, Not In Spite Of It.

Nurture & Knead is Sweet Cheeks Doulas’ survivor-centered parenting program for caregivers with kids from birth to age five (and beyond in some offerings).

You don’t have to figure this out alone. Nurture & Knead holds you, your children, and your inner child with care.

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What does it look like to parent from a healing nervous system, not just a surviving one?

  • Nurture & Knead is a trauma-informed, survivor-centered program that blends:

    • Practical tools for early childhood (birth—5)

    • Nervous system education for parents

    • Inner child and reparenting work

    • Community care and joy

    • Culturally rooted rituals and practices

  • Nurture & Knead is designed for:

    • Survivors who are parenting (or co-parenting) young children

    • Caregivers navigating postpartum, early childhood, and/or reentry

    • Parents who feel guilty, angry, tired, or scared they’re “messing it up”

    • Caregivers raising kids while also caring for siblings, elders, or community

    • Queer, trans, Black, Brown, disabled, neurodivergent, and/or low-income parents who rarely see themselves centered in parenting spaces


    You are welcome here if:

    • You were yelled at, dismissed, or hit as a child and don’t want to repeat that

    • You sometimes raise your voice and feel sick about it afterward

    • You feel overwhelmed by your child’s big feelings

    • You are grieving the parent you wish you had

    • You’re not sure what “gentle parenting” looks like when you’re exhausted and triggered

    You don’t have to have it “together”. We expect mess. We make room for it.

  • Nurture & Knead lives inside the larger Sweet Cheeks ecosystem:

    • Bread & Butter—survivor-centered sexuality, body literacy, and reproductive education

    • Full-Spectrum Doula Support—pregnancy, birth, loss, abortion, postpartum

    • Sweet Cheeks Eats (SCE)—nourishment and postpartum meal support

    • SCD Trainings & Fellowships—survivor-centered education for providers and advocates

    You don’t have to choose “just one lane.” You are welcome to move between programs as your life, body, and parenting journey evolves.

  • Nurture & Knead is built as a 6–12 week series, plus drop-ins and one-off workshops. Core themes include:

    • Parenting as a Survivor: How trauma, survival strategies, and systemic harm shape the way we show up with our kids.

    • Breaking Cycles with Compassion: Moving away from shame and punishment; honoring that you learned what you were taught.

    • Nervous Systems—Yours & Your Child’s: What fight/flight/freeze/fawn look like in parenting and play; how to co-regulate instead of collapse.

    • Attachment, Attunement, & Repair: How to notice your child’s bids for connection, and how to repair when things get hard (because they will).

    • Boundaries, Power & Consent in the Home: Teaching authority without domination; raising kids who feel safe in their own bodies.

    • Discipline vs. Punishment: Restorative approaches that focus on learning, not fear.

    • Regulation Tools for Parents & Kids: Simple practices you can actually use in Target, the car, the middle of the night, or after a meltdown.

    • Inner Child Work & Reparenting Practices: Honoring the younger you who deserved softness, while giving it to your kids and yourself now.

    • Parenting in Community: Building a village that is real, not hypothetical.

    • Play, Joy & Culturally Rooted Rituals: Bringing in music, food, story, and ancestral practices as part of your parenting toolbox.

    • Healing After Conflict: Scripted apologies, rupture + repair, and what to say when you’re not proud of how you reacted.

    • Reflection, Integration & Closure: Naming growth, grief, and next steps — for you and your family.

  • By the end of a Nurture & Knead cycle, our hope is that you:

    • understand your own nervous system and triggers more clearly

    • feel less alone and less ashamed in your parenting

    • have scripts for apologies, boundaries, and repair

    • have regulation tools that actually work for you and your child

    • can tell the difference between punishment and discipline

    • have more language for your needs and your child’s needs

    • feel more rooted in your values, culture, and vision for your family

    • can hold your inner child and your actual child with a little more softness

    You will still have hard days. But you won’t face them without tools or community.

  • We believe parenting support should not be a luxury.

    We offer:

    • sliding scale pricing

    • scholarships and sponsored spots when possible

    • childcare options or child-welcoming spaces for certain groups

    • accommodations for disability, language, and sensory needs whenever we’re able

    Exact details will depend on the services you are seeking. If cost or access is a barrier, let us know in your interest form. We will never shame you for asking for support.

What Makes Nurture & Knead Different

At Sweet Cheeks Doulas, we do not teach parenting from a place of:

  • shame

  • resepectability

  • carceral logic (“scare them straight”)

  • white, middle-class ideals

  • “one right way”

Instead, Nurture & Knead is:

  • Survivor-Centered: We assume you are a whole person with a story, not just a “mom” or “dad.” We honor the ways trauma, racism, poverty, ableism, fatphobia, and other systems shape your options, energy, and responses.

  • Trauma-Informed & Somatic: We talk about nervous systems, not just behaviors. We make space for your body’s responses and offer concrete regulation tools for you and your children.

  • Culturally Rooted: We uplift Black, Brown, Indigenous, queer, trans, and disabled parenting wisdom, ancestral practices, and community-based care—not just what’s in mainstream parenting books.

  • Anti-Carceral & Non-Punitive: We are not here to police or pathologize you. We actively resist parenting approaches rooted in fear, humiliation, and control.

  • Inclusive of All Family Constellations: Single parents, co-parents, step-parents, aunties/uncles, grandparents, foster parents, chosen family, guardians—all are welcome.

Program Offerings

At Nurture & Knead, we believe in empowering families through education, community, and support. Whether you’re navigating new parenthood or seeking resources to strengthen your family connections, we’re here to nurture you along the way.

  • Personalized sessions designed to address your unique challenges and goals as a parent. Our experienced coaches provide guidance on a wide range of topics, from newborn care to setting boundaries with toddlers and everything in between.

    A typical 90–120 minute session might include:

    • gentle grounding or somatic drop-in

    • community agreements that center safety for you and your kids

    • a short teaching moment (e.g., “fight/flight/freeze in toddlers and parents”)

    • story-circle or small group reflection

    • a practical tool (like a regulation game or a script for apologies)

    • space for questions and real-life scenarios

    • closing ritual, affirmation, or visualization

  • Interactive, small group + drop-in workshops that cover a variety of topics, including “Parenting as a Survivor,” “Rupture & Repair,” “Inner Child & Gentle Discipline”

  • Our curated bonding activities encourage meaningful connection between parents and their children. Activities are designed to foster attachment, promote emotional regulation, and build trust through play and interaction.

    Activity Highlights:

    • Baby Massage Classes

    • Family Yoga and Mindfulness Sessions

    • Art and Sensory Play for Developmental Growth

  • Join one of our community playgroups and meet other parents and children in a relaxed, supportive setting. Playgroups are designed for children of various ages and provide a fun, social environment for families to connect.

    Weekly Playgroups:

    • Infants (0-12 months)

    • Toddlers (1-3 years)

    • Preschoolers (3-5 years)

  • Designed specifically for busy parents, our Play & Learn Kits provide everything you need for at-home activities that promote your child’s cognitive, emotional, and physical development. Each kit includes easy-to-follow instructions, materials for creative play, and guidance on how to use play as a tool for learning.

  • Caregiver–child spaces focused on co-regulation, play, and culturally rooted rituals.

  • Longer, immersive days or weekends centering rest, reparenting, and community.

FAQs

  • Nurture & Knead is a survivor-centered parenting program for caregivers with kids ages 0–5. We focus on nervous system education, gentle discipline, cycle-breaking, regulation tools, and building safe, nurturing homes — all without shame or judgment.

  • No. Many participants identify as survivors, but all caregivers are welcome. We simply teach in ways that honor trauma, culture, identity, and lived experience.

  • This program is designed for caregivers of children from birth through age five, though some workshops and special events are open to caregivers with older children as well.

  • Yes! Some groups are child-welcoming, some offer on-site childcare, and some are caregiver-only, depending on the topic. Each cycle will note its format in the registration details.

  • Never. Sharing is always optional. You can participate by listening, observing, journaling, or stepping out for breaks whenever needed. “Pass” is always a full sentence.

  • Yes, you belong here. Nurture & Knead is built for parents who are doing their best while managing stress, triggers, overwhelm, and generational patterns. We approach these moments with compassion, not judgment.

  • Your fear makes sense. SCD is an anti-carceral, trauma-informed space. We do not use shame, punishment, or surveillance as tools. We follow mandated reporting laws with the least harm possible and center dignity, context, and support before anything else.

    You deserve a space where you can be honest without fear.

  • Perfect — you don’t need any prior knowledge. We explain everything in plain, accessible language and offer step-by-step tools you can try immediately.