Personally - hope has a lift and arch to it, the chest comes up and the upper back tilts back, an upward tilt of the chin and a slight tautness in the stomach; like I am a baby looking to an adult to be taken up into their arms. It feels like a light, but weak position.
Despair is a collapse forwards of the upper torso, softening of the stomach, a drop of the head. This feels like a heavy, weak position.
My personal experience is that hope easily segues to despair - an arch to a collapse. There's a very seductive flow to it (I think of the transition happening during a crescendo like in Swan Lake).
Something I suspect: if one hopes that something is going to happen, it's exceedingly likely that they don't believe it will happen; they just haven't accepted it yet. And/or they feel powerless to affect the outcome (I am reminded of gamblers). They're holding on to a prayer; Onto a bit of Deus Ex Machina.
I'd go as far as positing:
Despair can only arise out of hope
For resilience's sake, best to be aware of when there is too much hope, then;
- Relax the stomach and lower back; Raise the crown of the head and tilt the chin a degree or two towards your chest (I think both actions happen together, but I'm not sure); Adjust the weight on your feet so that is over the arches of the feet.1
- Look around and see what can be done and/or who can help.
- Or if it's time to cut losses and step away.
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1 Or any centring practice you know or googling can provide ;)
