React Form Submits Cause Page Reload Despite Using e.preventDefault()

I’m working on a React component with a form that sends a message using a custom hook. Despite using e.preventDefault() in the form’s onSubmit handler, the page reloads every time I submit the form, which interrupts my debugging process and resets the state. I’ve verified that e.preventDefault() is being called correctly, and there are no additional forms or submit buttons on the page that could be causing this behavior. I’m not seeing any JavaScript errors in the console that could explain this issue. I’ve also checked that the form is set up correctly, with the button type as submit.
here’s the component

`

import { FaSearch } from "react-icons/fa";
import useSendMessage from "../../hooks/useSendMessage";
import { useState } from "react";

const SearchInput = () => {
  const { loading, sendMessage } = useSendMessage();
  const [message, setMessage] = useState("");

  const handleMessageSend = async (e) => {
    e.preventDefault(); // Prevents default page reload

    if (!message) return;
    await sendMessage(message);
    setMessage("");
  };

  return (
    <form onSubmit={handleMessageSend}>`
      <input`
        type="text"
        value={message}
        onChange={(e) => setMessage(e.target.value)}
        placeholder="Type a message"
      />
      <button type="submit">
        {loading ? <span>Loading...</span> : <FaSearch />}
      </button>
    </form>
  );
};

export default SearchInput;`

any insights would be helpful

What I Tried:

I set up a React form with an onSubmit handler that calls e.preventDefault() to stop the page from reloading. I implemented a custom hook to handle sending messages via an API. I also verified that the form was correctly configured, with the submit button type set to “submit”.

What I Expected:

I expected the form to submit the message asynchronously without reloading the page. The state should update with the new message, and the input field should reset to an empty string.

What Actually Happened:

Despite calling e.preventDefault(), the page still reloads every time I submit the form, which resets the component state and interrupts the form submission process. I can’t debug the issue properly because the page reload prevents me from seeing console logs or tracking state changes.

here’s my useSendMessage

import toast from "react-hot-toast";
import useConversations from "../zustand/useConversations";
import { useState } from "react";

const useSendMessage = () => {
  const [loading, setLoading] = useState(false);
  const { messages, setMessages, selectedConversation } = useConversations();

  const sendMessage = async (message) => {
    try {
      setLoading(true);
      const res = await fetch(
        `/api/messages/send/${selectedConversation._id}`,
        {
          method: "POST",
          headers: {
            "Content-type": "application/json",
          },
          body: JSON.stringify({ message }),
        }
      );

      const data = await res.json();
      if (data.error) throw new Error(data.error);

      setMessages([...messages, data]);
    } catch (error) {
      toast.error(error.message);
    } finally {
      setLoading(false);
    }
  };

  return { loading, sendMessage };
};

export default useSendMessage;

here’s zustand

import { create } from "zustand";

const useConversations = create((set) => ({
  selectedConversation: null,
  setSelectedConversation: (selectedConversation) =>
    set({ selectedConversation }),
  messages: [],
  setMessages: (messages) => set({ messages }),
}));

export default useConversations;