The stock market takes investors on an exciting journey of terrifying declines as interest rates continue to rise, and cryptocurrencies continue to decline, indicating a recession or a high possibility of an inevitable recession.

Given the serious impact of the Great Recession of 2008, staying calm or just waiting may not be enough this time to deal with your worries about your financial well-being.

What you should definitely avoid is taking steps based on fears of a recession that will leave you in a worse financial position.

In this report, published by the American Washington Post, writer Michelle Singletary stated that recessions do not last forever, but rather last an average of 11 months, while the shortest recession ever - which is the 2020 recession caused by the pandemic - lasted 3 months only.

Here are 7 tips for protecting yourself whether or not there is a potential recession.

Don't be afraid of the bear market

A bear market is defined as a 20% decline from its most recent high.

Since 1950, the average bear market has lasted about 418 days, according to Anthony Saglimben, global markets analyst at Amirprize Financial.

Saglimben has suggested that this market can be tapped into by focusing on companies that have balance sheets, strong cash flow, and products that consumers use and need.

According to Kristen Benz, Director of Personal Finance at Morningstar, “Healthcare and consumer goods companies often do well in recessionary environments because people don't need their products less regardless of the economic environment.”

A bear market may be a good time to take advantage of the "dollar cost averaging" strategy, that is, to invest the same amount of money regularly regardless of the ups and downs in the market.

Although stocks are volatile at the moment, they recover well with time after the recession has passed.

Don't try to catch the right time for stocks to drop

Many people may try to dodge their trading i.e. they consider getting out of the stock market or reducing their investment amount until things get better, but it is impossible to know the best time to get out of this market and back in.

Once the low point is reached in a bear market, Saglimben noted, stock returns for the S&P 500 tend to be above average.

"We train investors and advisors, who find themselves in the midst of a recession or a bear market, to avoid any major adjustments in allocation until the situation calms down. The worst thing an investor can do right now is try to time the exit from the market."

Get rid of your credit card debt instantly

“The first step for anyone with a credit card is to pay off their balance as quickly as possible, because a recession causes interest rates to go up quickly,” said Matt Schulz, chief credit analyst at Landing Tree.

The writer indicated that one way to deal with debt is to obtain a low-interest personal loan or sign up for a credit card to transfer the balance.

You can get out of debt faster if you transfer high-interest debt to a zero-interest credit card, but this card may not be for everyone.

Saving when plenty

The author advises saving when you have extra cash because a recession can change your circumstances quickly.

And if you don't have a good emergency fund, avoid extra expenses or unnecessary projects.

Also, remember that storing 3 to 6 months' worth of living expenses may not be enough at a later stage.

Create an emergency fund backup

In addition to having a fund for tough downturns, Benz recommends finding another source of extra cash in case you need it when necessary.

Benz stated that a home equity line of credit may be the best source of extra money in this situation.

Never underestimate the power of owning bonds in your retirement portfolio

When stocks drop in value, bonds usually balance out your own equity holdings, but bond prices have also taken a hit in this period.

However, Benz noted that bonds have managed to hold up better than almost any other sector of the market during previous recessions.

Therefore, these bonds should not be given away even if they are not performing well.

Find additional work

The author indicated that there is a record number of vacancies, while the unemployment rate reached 3.6%.

According to the US Department of Labor, the economy saw job gains in transportation and warehousing, entertainment and hospitality, education, health services and government jobs.

Even if you don't need the money right now, it may be a good time to look for a second job or additional work in the gig economy to increase your income and savings.