WHAT IS FATIGUE?
Fatigue is a phenomenon that is experienced when mental or physical alertness is required for extended periods of time. Unlike the hearing population, fatigue is more frequently experienced by individuals who are D/deaf 1.
Students who are D/deaf experience fatigue daily because of the necessity for constant and ongoing physical, social-emotional, or mental effort to listen and watch both their teacher and an interpreter, to speech/lip read with peers, or attend to classroom instruction through an amplification device.
The cumulative effects of such experiences lead to poorer quality of life outcomes for D/deaf students, including limiting educational and vocational choices, increased mental health concerns, and negative impacts on family and friend relationships.