Markets down. Inflation up. It may not be an ideal time to retire. The Wall Street Journal’s Anne Tergesen tapped King of Prussia professor/author Wade Pfau for advice in these shaky times.

Pfau is on the faculty of the King of Prussia-based American College of Financial Services, an online university. He’s also the author of the Retirement Planning Guidebook.

He concedes that the current bear market isn’t ideal for transitioning from a career. But it’s safely doable.

Pfau points to history as evidence: The 2008 financial crisis in the U.S. decimated many nest eggs. But, he said, “as long as you didn’t panic and sell your stocks in 2008, you’d be doing fine today.”

Additional pieces of advice for retirees (present and future) include the recommendation to cut spending when markets decline (even a four-percent belt-tightening can make a big difference).

Further, he says that during economic slumps, it’s time to use other assets. Rather than sell stocks at a loss, retirees can access household cash from whole life insurance policies or accessing a reverse mortgage line of credit.

“Weigh the pros and cons carefully,” Pfau said.

More on Wade Pfau and his retirement strategies is at The Wall Street Journal.