What is fatigue ? Understanding fatigue among students with disabilities can help schools moderate it
By Natalia Rohatyn-Martin
During the COVID-19 pandemic , we heard about people experiencing different kinds of fatigue , whether related to burnout , being unmotivated to follow pandemic restrictions or as a symptom of infection . But what exactly is fatigue ?
Fatigue is not synonymous with tiredness . When one is tired , sleep helps . Fatigue results when cognitive , emotional or physical attentiveness is required for prolonged periods of time resulting in feelings of tiredness , exhaustion or lack of energy or desire to continue a task . It is not resolved by a nap .
Fatigue regularly includes difficulties in concentration , feelings of anxiety and increased distractibility . Medical professionals and researchers currently define fatigue by differentiating types of exertion : physical , cognitive and as it has more recently been conceptualized , socialemotional .
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