Award Slump

Hello!
I recently won a major, top award in a very well-known international science competition. However, I can’t stop feeling that I do not deserve it. It’s a feeling that because I, myself, won the award, the award doesn’t mean anything and it shouldn’t.

Has anyone else had experience with this? Could anyone give me advice on how to get over this slump?

This is what’s known as imposter syndrome, where you doubt your accomplishments and self-worth. Most people, especially high schoolers like you and me, get it a lot. I haven’t really gotten over it yet, but here’s what I’ve always been told: you won the award for a reason, because of your own hard work, therefore you really do deserve it.
I know sometimes it’s hard to tell yourself otherwise, but your achievements are always well-deserved and impressive if you’ve put the effort into it. Hope this feeling gets better for all of us.

Hey thanks for replying, I didn’t think anyone was going to. Maybe just time will tell, but we’ll keep hoping anyways.