• Try to withdraw as little as possible from your investments. If your investments have declined in value, reevaluate your current withdrawal amounts. Withdrawing the same amount from a substantially smaller portfolio means that you will deplete the balance much sooner. If you must make the same withdrawals, at least calculate what impact that will have on your current portfolio.

• Consider postponing retirement or going back to work. If you haven't retired yet, you may want to postpone retirement until you are sure your investments will provide enough income for retirement. Those who are already retired may want to consider going back to work on at least a part-time basis to avoid withdrawing too much from investments.

• Build up a reserve of investments not tied to the stock market. This reservie should total three or four years of retirement expenses. With this reserve, you won't have to sell your stock investments during market declines.

• Withdraw funds in a tax-efficient manner so they last longer. In general, you should withdraw taxable investments first so that your tax-deferred investments can continue their tax-deferred growth. In most cases, however, you will need to start taking minimum required distributions from your tax-deferred investments by age 70 ½.

• Reassess your asset allocation. The recent stock market fluctuations may have made you realize that your portfolio contains too much risk. While you may not want to make major asset allocation changes immediately, you can take steps to gradually add diversification to your portfolio.

• Decide whether you want a professional to manage your investments. In volatile markets, you may feel more comfortable allowing an investment professional to make investment decisions for you.