The present study explores the value of the Stimulated Recall Protocol for investigations of first language attrition. On the basis of a study of Spanish heritage speakers in the United States it is argued that this method allows a more direct way of tapping into compensatory strategies which speakers apply in situations of communicative breakdown. Insights which speakers provide upon being confronted with their own narratives can provide evidence for changes in the process of regulation which are experienced by attriters, who, faced with the task of engaging in a communicative activity, are forced to retreat to previous stages in this developmental process.