With the economy, and retirement funds, in shambles, a lot of us wonder when, or if, we will ever be able to retire. These sites provide the first steps for finding out. First, take a deep breath.

Can you recover? This site charts the prospects of regaining retirement investment losses. For those under 40, there's hope. For those over 40, things will be difficult. And for those over 50, "Regaining the losses of 2008 might not be possible before retirement age, no matter what strategy is used." One suggestion here is to make permanent adjustments to a frugal lifestyle. The Credit Withdrawal site is dedicated to helping us "kick the credit habit."

http://go.philly.com/recover

Social Security. To know how Social Security benefits will figure into your new meager retirement plan, check this retirement planner page at the Social Security Administration Web site. It has links to tell you how benefits differ, depending on your retirement age, income, years spent working, and other factors.

www.ssa.gov/retirement/

Consumer information. Another government page, this one provides additional links about retirement, including information about laws that govern pensions, how to safeguard your retirement from errors in calculations, and tips on working after retirement.

http://go.philly.com/usgov

New rules. This article - from USNews.com and posted on Yahoo's finance site - suggests that "many of the old rules for retirement investing no longer apply" and that financial planners are rethinking conventional wisdom. Much of the advice sounds familiar, anyway: Go for good stocks that pay dividends; don't reach for the highest bond yields (they're on the riskier debt); and diversify.

http://go.philly.com/usnews1

Recession saving. A link at the same site took us to this article on "7 ways to save for retirement during a recession." These include realizing you might not be able to "hang up your hat" at age 65, but not letting market swings upset your investing strategy. And: "Scale back on Gucci" sales.

http://go.philly.com/usnews2

Contact staff writer Reid Kanaley at 215-854-5114 or rkanaley@phillynews.com.