Naomi Osaka is spending some time reflecting on her incredible journey this year.
The athlete penned a touching letter on Instagram that was both honest about her struggles with imposter syndrome and a reminder to treat yourself kindly.
"Some tennis memories over the past year that mean a lot to me," she captioned the screenshot of her notes app message titled "Hi."
She started the message saying, “I’ve been reflecting over this past year. So grateful for the people around me because the support I feel is completely unparalleled.”
She went on to explain how she's been spent some time looking within and discovering some of the reasons behind certain actions.
"Recently I’ve been asking myself why do I feel the way I do and I realized one of the reasons is because internally I think I’m never good enough," she wrote. "I’ve never told myself that I’ve done a good job, but I do know I constantly tell myself that I suck or I could do better."
While I still think Naomi is beyond humble and gracious, she also revealed that she's used that as a wall in the past.
“I know in the past, some people have called me humble," she shared. "But if I really consider it I think I’m extremely self-deprecating. Every time a new opportunity arises my first thought is, 'wow, why me?'"
Since stepping away from the French Open in May, Naomi has been more honest about her mental health.
“I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m gonna try to celebrate myself and my accomplishments more, I think we all should,” she shared. “You got up in the morning and didn’t procrastinate on something? Champion. Figured something out at work that’s been bugging you for a while? Absolute legend. Your life is your own and you shouldn’t value yourself on other people’s standards.”
She ended her thought with an encouraging message about where she will go from here.
