ABSTRACT Lack of treatment proactivity significantly affects the treatment outcomes for adolescent anorexia nervosa in China. This research illustrates a case where narrative therapy, focusing on bodily sensations, was employed for a Chinese adolescent with anorexia nervosa characterised by low treatment proactivity. The study analyses the case using a merged methodological frameworks of case study and narrative inquiry. This research delineates the client’s transformation through three primary themes: Detachment from Sensations of Dirtiness, Positive Development of Self-identity, and Enhancing Treatment Proactivity (two subthemes: Interpretation and Reversal of the ‘Dirtiness’ Bodily Sensations and Reconstruction of the Social Network). Finally, it analyses the relationships among various themes and constructs a process diagram to illustrate the entire transformation journey of the client. This study suggests that enhancing treatment proactivity could be linked to changes in understanding of bodily sensations and in self-narratives.