Case Study: NLP Submodality Shift for Removing Childhood Shame — Combined Cases from Bangalore & Los Angeles

Why This Case Study Matters

Shame is one of the most toxic and paralysing emotions. It often begins in childhood – a harsh remark, public humiliation, bullying, or a mistake that was never forgiven. For many adults I work with in Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Los Angeles, Houston, San Francisco, Atlanta, Birmingham, Barcelona, Berlin, Melbourne and Sydney, this early childhood shame silently shapes their life for decades.

This case study combines patterns from multiple real clients (details changed for privacy) into a single story that shows how NLP submodalities and submodality shift can be used to transform deep childhood shame into self-worth and emotional freedom.

Presenting Problem – Childhood Shame That Would Not Go Away

The client composite we will call “A” (from Bangalore and Los Angeles) came with complaints like:

“I intellectually know I am capable, but I feel like a fraud.”
“Whenever I think of that childhood incident, my body tightens and I just want to disappear.”
“I avoid visibility – speaking up in meetings, promotions, interviews – because some part of me still feels unworthy.”

They had already done years of self-help, online courses and some counselling. They had insights but the emotional charge was still stuck in the body.

Step 1 – Eliciting the Submodalities of Shame

In NLP, submodalities are the fine details of your inner experience – the brightness, size, distance of an image; the volume, pitch and location of a sound; the intensity, temperature and pressure of a feeling.

We began by asking specific questions to discover the submodality structure of childhood shame in this case:

Visual submodalities – “When you think of that memory, is the picture close or far, big or small, bright or dark, still or moving?”
Auditory submodalities – “Are there words you hear – maybe a parent, teacher or bully – where is the sound located, how loud, what tone?”
Kinesthetic submodalities – “Where in your body do you feel it, what is the intensity, movement, temperature, pressure?”

For “A”, the shame picture was:

Very close to the face, big, dark and slightly above eye level.
There was a loud voice saying “You should be ashamed of yourself” in a harsh tone, coming from the left ear.
The feeling was a tight knot in the chest and stomach, with heaviness and downward pressure.

Step 2 – Separating the Memory from the Identity

Before we changed any submodalities, we made a crucial distinction using NLP and coaching principles:

The event happened.
The feelings are real.
But the meaning “I am shameful / not good enough” is a learned conclusion, not the truth of who they are.

This distinction is aligned with both NLP reframing and ICF-coaching style questions used in my Life Transformation Coach and Life Transformation Power Coach trainings.

Step 3 – Designing the Desired State Using Submodalities

We then designed a new internal representation: self-worth and dignity.

“If you already felt worthy, confident and safe, what would your inner picture look like?”
“What would be the colours, brightness, size, distance?”
“What would your body feel like – posture, breath, sensations?”

For “A”, the desired state was:

A bright, colourful image of themselves standing tall on a stage, slightly to the right, at a comfortable distance.
An inner supportive voice saying, “You belong here. You are enough,” in a warm, steady tone.
A feeling of openness in the chest, relaxed shoulders and steady breathing.

Step 4 – Submodality Shift Process (Simplified)

We then used a structured NLP submodality shift to change the shame image into the new coding. This is a simplified version; in live work, we proceed more slowly and responsively:

Externalising the old picture – asking “A” to see the shame picture in front of them rather than inside their head.
Adjusting visual submodalities – gradually moving the picture farther away, making it smaller, dimmer and shifting it from above eye level to below.
Adjusting auditory submodalities – changing the harsh voice to a softer, lower-volume voice, moving it away, even turning it into “blah blah blah”.
Bringing in the new picture – simultaneously making the self-worth image brighter, closer and more colourful, with a warm internal voice.
Linking body sensations – asking “A” to breathe into the new posture and feeling while looking at the new image.

This process combines elements you see in many NLP case studies for emotional healing in India, USA, UK and Europe: submodality work, visualisation, somatic awareness and meaning change.

Step 5 – Future Pacing Everyday Triggers

We did not stop with the memory. We then future-paced situations where shame used to appear:

Speaking up in meetings (Bangalore and San Francisco clients).
Going live on video or social media (Los Angeles and Mumbai clients).
Saying “no” and setting boundaries (Pune, Houston and Berlin clients).

For each scenario, “A” rehearsed seeing themselves in the new image, stepping into the new body feeling and hearing the new inner voice. This reinforced the submodality shift across real-life contexts.

Results – What Changed After the NLP Submodality Intervention

Over the following weeks, “A” reported:

Reduced intensity – thinking of the childhood incident no longer triggered the same physical collapse or desire to disappear.
Increased visibility – they volunteered to present in meetings in Bangalore and later gave a talk in Los Angeles.
Healthier self-talk – instead of automatic self-attack, there was more curiosity and kindness.

This matches many similar NLP coaching case studies in India and USA – emotional charge reduces, behaviour changes and the person experiences greater choice.

Important Notes & Ethics

It is important to understand:

This is a composite NLP case study that combines patterns from multiple real clients to protect privacy.
NLP is a powerful approach to change internal representations. It is not a replacement for medical or psychiatric care where needed.
For severe trauma or mental health conditions, always consult a qualified health professional. NLP can complement but not replace appropriate treatment.

Where Does This Fit in the Larger Ecosystem?

This NLP submodality shift is not an isolated trick. It is part of a larger ecosystem of NLP, ICF coaching, emotional intelligence and somatic work that I use with clients and teach in my programs.

NLP Techniques Explained – to understand submodalities alongside anchoring, swish, reframing and parts integration.
Advanced NLP Master Practitioner Patterns – to see where deep submodality work sits in the bigger map.
Integrated NLP + ICF + EI Guide – to understand how this work links with emotional intelligence and coaching.

How You Can Learn & Apply This Work

If you are reading this from Bangalore, Los Angeles, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Houston, San Francisco, Atlanta, Birmingham, Barcelona, Berlin, Melbourne, Sydney or any other city, there are two main ways you might want to use this:

As a client – to experience emotional healing and behaviour change using NLP-based approaches.
As a coach, therapist or professional – to learn NLP submodality techniques and integrate them into your work.

As a Client

You can start by reading more about Emotional Fitness Gym® and gamified emotional intelligence programs, which combine NLP, somatic work and EI.
If you feel a strong pull to work on shame, guilt, fear or old emotional patterns, you can book a free 30-minute clarity call to discuss your situation.

As a Coach or Professional

Learn the foundational tools in NLP Practitioner Certification.
Go deeper into complex submodality work, belief change and modelling with NLP Master Practitioner Certification or ICF NLP Master Practitioner.
If you want a ready-made toolkit, explore NLP Transformation Toolkit and NLP Coaching Tools Bundle.

Final Reflection

Shame says, “There is something wrong with you.” When we work with NLP submodalities, we are not denying what happened. We are changing the way your brain and body store that experience, so that the memory loses its power to define you.

When that happens, people from Bangalore to Los Angeles discover something profound: what felt like a life sentence was actually a pattern – and patterns can be changed.

Frequently Asked Questions – NLP Submodality Shift Case Study

What is a submodality shift in NLP?

Submodalities are the fine details of your inner experience—such as brightness, distance, colour, sound, tone and body sensations. A submodality shift is an NLP process where you deliberately change these fine details of an internal image, sound or feeling so that the emotional meaning changes. In this case study, submodality shifts are used to transform the intensity of childhood shame.

What kinds of childhood shame were addressed in this Bangalore and Los Angeles case study?

The combined case study is drawn from two clients—one from Bangalore and one from Los Angeles—who carried long-standing shame from early school incidents, critical parenting and repeated embarrassment in social situations. The work shows how changing the inner images, sounds and body sensations linked to these events helped them release the emotional charge while keeping the learning.

Is NLP submodality work safe to use for deep emotional issues?

When used by a well-trained practitioner who respects emotional pacing, consent and safety, submodality work can be a powerful yet gentle way to transform deep emotional patterns. It is important to stay within coaching or personal development boundaries and to refer to licensed mental health professionals when clients need clinical support beyond the scope of coaching or NLP-based work.

Do you work with clients from other cities besides Bangalore and Los Angeles?

Yes. Similar submodality-based change work is done with clients across India in cities like Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Chennai, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad, as well as globally from London, Manchester, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Amsterdam, Berlin, Barcelona, Paris, Zurich, Dubai, Singapore, Melbourne and Sydney through online and in-person formats.

Where can I learn to use submodality shifts and related NLP techniques professionally?

Submodality work is covered in depth in NLP Practitioner and especially NLP Master Practitioner programs, and is further integrated with ICF-aligned coaching, Emotional Fitness Gym® and somatic-based emotional intelligence work. These programs are available for participants from India, the UK, the USA, Europe and APAC/Middle East hubs who want to master ethical, powerful tools for deep change.