I had the same problem until I saw the light. The problem wasn't React: it was me. You shouldn't merely learn React, but also unidirectional-flow architectures

I had the same problem until I saw the light. The problem wasn't React: it was me. You shouldn't merely learn React, but also unidirectional-flow architectures (like Flux, but there are many others, including better ones IMHO). Bidirectional data flow is a pain in the ass and once you understand unidirectional data flow, everything fits much easier. Of course, trying to shoehorn a bidirectional data flow in React is going to cause a lot of pain. If you still need a bidirectional data flow, messing with lifecycle callbacks is definitely not the way to go. It seems to me you didn't have problems with React. You had problems learning React.