I say a little less than a year. When I got to this board, I read everything that talked about hair care...regimen, products, growth aids, etc. I learned pretty quick that most of the ladies hair that I admired (relaxed and natural) didn't jump on bandwagons, or use a lot of unconventional growth aids. They kept things pretty simple. So my biggest hurdles where finding products that worked on my hair, taking my time detangling and realizing that if I concentrated on the health of my hair the length/growth part would take care of itself. Learning these things gave me the confidence to bc knowing that the length will return.