If you invested in Bitcoin, this has been a stressful month. Prices of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies have been tumbling.

A post on SteemIt predicts Bitcoin may fall to $100 within the next few months. Obviously, people that own Steem coins have a vested interest in turning people away from Bitcoin, because it would likely have a positive effect on Steem prices. However, the speculation is based on very valid concerns.

CoinTelegraph reports that the losses affect all cryptocurrencies, but Bitcoin is suffering the most.

“Bitcoin Cash, supporters of which demand a fork of the Bitcoin Blockchain, could well go ahead next week, reintroducing uncertainty and ‘versions’ of Bitcoin feared by opponents to drive down prices in the long term. Meanwhile across the top ten cryptocurrencies, broad losses triggered, with Ethereum down almost 10 percent and Ripple almost 12 percent.”

Bitcoin owners need to be aware of the trends. They don’t need to fork over their investments, but they should at least monitor the market. If you are anxious about your Bitcoin holdings, you want to be aware of other options besides selling them.

What Should I Do With My Bitcoins?

If you get caught up in the doom and gloom, you may believe that you are about to lose your entire investment. I would caution against buying into this fear for a couple of reasons:

• Bitcoin has been around for a long time. It is still a great long-term asset and may rebound strongly if it becomes a mainstream currency. It is becoming more widely adopted, so there is a good reason to believe that the recent drop will be temporary.
• Avoiding “noise” in the market is essential for every long-term investor, regardless of the asset. I started reading investing books from William O’Neil and other legendary investors long before the existence of Bitcoin. One thing always stood out from those books – smart investors know to ignore a lot of the noise, because markets go up and down all the time. If you sell your asset after a major price drop, it is likely to rebound in the future.
• Much bigger catastrophes have occurred throughout the history of Bitcoin, such as the collapse of Mt. Gox and the introduction of litecoin and other cryptocurrencies. The most recent events pale in comparison.
• If many investors start selling large share of Bitcoins, they may pressure value to drop further. This can exacerbate the problem for themselves and other investors.

Nevertheless, there are still options for people that want to phase out their Bitcoin portfolio. Here are some ideas to consider.

Look for Retailers that Accept Bitcoin

If you don’t want to crash the value of Bitcoins, you should consider using them to make purchases rather than selling them off. Obviously, you wouldn’t crash the market yourself, but it is a good idea for everyone to be aware of their options to avoid collectively driving down prices. Fortunately, there are a number of places that accept them. Here is a list:

• Ebay
• Subway
• OkCupid
• Dell
• Steam
• The Pirate Bay
• Zynga
• Gap
• Whole Foods
• Square

If you shop at any of these retailers, consider using your Bitcoin for purchases rather than liquidating your holdings. You won’t have to worry about crashing the market.

Donate Them to Non-profits

Do you want to do something more altruistic with your Bitcoins? You can consider donating them to a nonprofit organization rather than selling them or making purchases. Surprisingly, there are a lot of nonprofits that accept Bitcoins, including:

• Wikipedia
• Jaunimo linija (an emotional support program for youth)
• WordPress (the content management system project is a nonprofit that can afford to make its services free due to donations from loyal users)
• Human Rights Foundation (yes, they actually started accepting Bitcoin)
• BitHope Foundation (this project has created a lot of micro charities that do a lot of good for the environment, advancements in healthcare and other social projects)
• Sea Shepard (an environmental activism group)
• FreeSnowden (an activism group that supports the rights of whistleblowers and demands transparency among governments and large corporations)

Bitcoin owners that support any of these causes should consider donating their currency to provide their support.

Get into Online Gaming

A growing number of online gaming companies have started accepting Bitcoin as a payment. Some of the top Bitcoin gaming sites include:

• Primedice
• FortuneJack
• Fun Crypto Games
• Betcoin Poker
• DirectBet
• Bit Casino Poker
• Seals with Clubs Poker

You can easily liquidate your portfolio when you are done playing, but you could at least have some fun and have the chance to earn some coin in the process. Many of these sites accept customers from the U.S. as well, unlike competitors that don’t accept Bitcoin.