Most critically, fatigue is often more persistent, sometimes carrying over multiple days, whereas tiredness usually resolves with a good night’s sleep. This is because tiredness links directly to a lack of sleep, whereas fatigue can come from many different sources.  
Research suggests that hearing loss may be one such source. 

Can Hearing Loss Cause Fatigue?

 A recent study by researchers at Johns Hopkins University utilizing data from National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) uncovered evidence of a link between fatigue and hearing loss. 
The results of the self-reported survey showed a clear correlation between hearing loss and frequency of fatigue. The survey included individuals with hearing loss as well as individuals without hearing loss, and the likelihood a participant would report experiencing fatigue every day rose with each 10dB of hearing loss. Additionally, those participants with hearing loss were more likely to report experiencing fatigue half of the days or all the days than to report no fatigue. 
The report of these findings say this correlation requires further study to fully understand the relationship between general fatigue and hearing loss. However, there is a more specific form of fatigue with a clearer connection: Listening Fatigue. 

Hearing Loss and Listening Fatigue

Hearing happens passively, but listening takes mental effort. Listening fatigue occurs when your brain gets overtaxed by the mental strain of active listening. This isn’t exclusive to individuals with hearing loss — anyone who’s had to sit through hours-long lectures or a meeting that drags on has probably experienced listening fatigue.  
Your ears and your brain work together to allow you to listen to your surroundings. When your ears aren't functioning at 100% efficiency, that puts more of the load on your brain. It becomes a more straining mental task to sort through and process the sound signals your ears are sending. That’s why listening fatigue can be more prevalent among people with hearing loss. 

How to Fight Listening Fatigue

 When you experience listening fatigue, there are a few effective ways to cope. The simplest advice is to get away from the noise. For those with hearing aids, this can be as easy as taking them out for a bit and enjoying the quiet. 
You can also go for a walk (avoid busy areas) or find a quiet part of the house to relax in. This can also be helpful if you’re feeling fatigued but still need to pay attention to a phone or video call. Removing the amount of background noise your brain needs to sift through can lighten the mental load. 
If you’ve got free time, you might even consider a quick power nap. The National Sleep Foundation suggests that 20–30-minute naps can improve alertness without making you groggy. 
These are all short-term solutions for in-the-moment listening fatigue. They can help you recover for a time, but fatigue is often long-lasting. To get to the root of listening fatigue, it might be time to get a professional hearing assessment. Tools like hearing aids or phone call captioning can help your ears provide your brain with clearer inputs, reducing the mental effort to understand what you’re hearing.