Q. In my family it seems that anxiety accompanies hopelessness. How do you describe anxiety and what is its link, if any, with hopelessness?

A. Anxiety is a form of fear, the emotion that arises when you feel unsafe. Fear of the unknown is a common trigger for anxiety. If you frequently feel unsafe due to real or imagined danger, and begin to worry about it (worry being anxiety’s twin), eventually you may begin to feel hopeless because worry and anxiety never solve anything. They do stress the brain, can suppress immune system function, lead to depression, and so on.