The word recession is often thrown around on the nightly news and in the papers, but what exactly does it mean? Simply put, a recession is a period of decline in economic activity that lasts at least a few months. Some of the more visible signs of a recession are a plunging stock market and sharply rising unemployment.
If you’re dependent on a job for income—as most of us are—or close to retirement, then the idea of losing your job or seeing your life’s savings take a nose-dive can be a major source of stress, especially since recessions are so hard to predict.
