This paper is an excerpt of a larger qualitative study on the living experience of being a father of a deaf child. Here, we will discuss from the fathers perspective, the feelings involved in this experience, since the suspicion of the deafness to coping. The participants were 05 fathers whose children had diagnosis of deafness. A semi-structured interview was used to collect data. The interviews were conducted individually, taped and then transcribed. After in-depth readings, the content was grouped into thematic categories and then discussed. The results showed a diversity of feelings and reactions experienced by fathers. Immobility, impotence, fragility and sorrow appeared on parental reports as well as a lack of internal resources to face and handle the new situation. Time and interaction were important factors to contribute for a new meaning of deafness and for fathers’ acceptation of the child.
Fatherhood; deafness; feelings