In Greek mythology, Deimos and Phobos were the gods of fear, or fear personified. Deimos represented creeping terror and dread (think the part of the horror movie when you realize you’re trapped in the house with a killer), and Phobos represented panic (the part of the horror movie where you’ve seen one friend killed and start to run).



And while fear has been around since the beginning, it wasn’t until around the 1700s that English speakers started adding “phobia” onto the end of nouns to mean “the fear of.”

Phobias are generally broken down into 3 categories. First, specific or simple phobias are the most common and are triggered by specific objects like spiders. Second, there are Agoraphobia phobias, which center the fear around being in a situation with no easy escape without embarrassment, like having a panic attack when you’re stuck in an airplane (been there, no shame) . The third type is Social phobia which can cause extreme anxiety in public or social situations and can lead to low self-esteem. This third type can cause many social issues such as dropping out of school and being unable to make friends.



Are you ready to see what some people are strangely petrified of? Here are the 25 Strangest Phobias You Could Have.

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