Table 1 Examples of a unit of meaning, code and theme

1.

‘[…] wo bu zhidao zenme shuo…emm…jiushi…(pause)…wo juede wode yangzi hen nankan…wode houbei bu haokan…wo hen zaiyi tongxuede yanguang…wo bu tai yuanyi gen tongxue wan le…ganjue hen diuren….’ NO. 15

En. I don’t know how to say. I feel like I look ugly because of my back. I care about others’ opinions on my appearance very much. I don’t want to play with my classmates. I feel embarrassed.

I look ugly and feel embarrassed because of the deformity.

Aesthetics anxiety

2.

‘[…] shouxian hen qingxing de shi wo houbei de wanqubianxing meiyou name mingxian… danshi… dangwo yudong de shihou…emm…youqi jinxing julie yundong de shihou wode houbei hui teng…lingwai youxie dongzuo wo ye zuobudao…bi ru wanyao qu goujiaozhi…wo gandao youxie jusang he jiaolv…’ No. 42

En. First of all, I feel so lucky that my back deformity is not every evident. What annoys me much is that my back hurts when I do exercise, especially strenuous exercise. What’s more, I am not able to do some sports movements, like bending and touching toes. I feel a bit frustrated and anxious.

My back hurts and I cannot do some sports movements. I feel frustrated and anxious.

Activity participation anxiety