As a retiree living on my own savings without a retirement pension, the recent volatility is concerning. But, all is not lost. Your mandatory distributions can be reinvested--if you choose/can--and many dividend aristocrat stocks are now on the cheap. You can also pick up some very solid REIT’s at good rates right now. Interest rates are coming down. Gas is getting cheaper. There are some trade-offs.
No one likes to see their investments lose ground. But, people who scream for major pay raises and jobs always forget that higher wages and better jobs create higher costs. Many have gotten used to having basically 'slave labor' producers with safety issues and living conditions they would never work or live under producing our cheap goods.
I would rather pay less and make more also. But, we're on an unsustainable path. Something has to change. As a conservative libertarian--for lack of a better description--I'm not a fan of tariffs or currency manipulation. But, it will never stop. It can only be minimized. We'll have to wait a little to see if any of these actions help.
For perspective sake, my investments are still up almost 8% even with the recent sell-offs over the last 10 years. If you have a fairly balanced portfolio, yours should be somewhat similar. Remember, the Dow closed above 16,000 for the first time ever November 21, 2013. Barely 10 years ago. At close Friday, even after the large losses, it closed at 38,314.
Roughly 2.5x growth.
Perspective. Don't let the fear-mongers get you. You say you've been investing for 40 years. The market was around 5,000. You're still way ahead of the game.