In this paper we have attempted to present an attachment-based understanding of the importance of formulating and conceptualizing narrative form and coherence. Arising from our analysis, we also present a number of hypotheses about the nature of emotional recovery following psychosis and the central processes of affect regulation as they are reflected in the narratives of those in recovery. These hypotheses form the basis of a developing approach to operationalizing these processes and their implications for the construction of meaning in the context of cognitive interpersonal therapy. We can conclude little about the validity and psychotherapeutic utility of our conceptualizations of ‘freedom and autonomy’, ‘thwarted recovery’, and ‘defended independence’ without further empirical work investigating the reliability, validity, and prognostic significance of these narrative forms. Crucially, also, to what extent do these narratives change in the process of recovery and, in particular, psychotherapy, and to what extent do these changes map on to other indices of recovery?