It’s useful to analyze past bear markets and their recovery times. Roque notes that from 1909 to 1919, the Dow was just about flat. After the 1929 peak, the Dow didn’t hit a new all-time high for nearly 30 years. And from 1965 to 1982, the Dow was essentially flat.
In other words, be patient. This could take some time.
With the market plunge, inevitably investors come out wanting to know when the bottom has been hit so they can start buying again. Catherine Rampell for the New York Times says that after the tech bubble burst, the S&P 500 saw a peak in October 2007, so it looks like we might have a few years to go.
As for when to get in, we use the 200-day moving average to decide which trends are there.