diff --git a/backend/app/routers/connections.py b/backend/app/routers/connections.py
index a566f27..dd0b1ce 100644
--- a/backend/app/routers/connections.py
+++ b/backend/app/routers/connections.py
@@ -249,8 +249,11 @@ async def send_connection_request(
     # Extract ntfy config before commit (avoids detached SA object in background task)
     target_ntfy = extract_ntfy_config(target_settings) if target_settings else None
 
+    # Build response BEFORE commit — commit expires all ORM objects, and accessing
+    # their attributes after commit triggers lazy loads → MissingGreenlet in async SA.
+    response = _build_request_response(conn_request, current_user, sender_settings, target, target_settings)
+
     await db.commit()
-    await db.refresh(conn_request)
 
     # ntfy push in background (non-blocking)
     background_tasks.add_task(
@@ -260,7 +263,7 @@ async def send_connection_request(
         "request_received",
     )
 
-    return _build_request_response(conn_request, current_user, sender_settings, target, target_settings)
+    return response
 
 
 # ── GET /requests/incoming ──────────────────────────────────────────