Anyone else getting "AI brain rot" while trying to learn?

[Unmarked-Kyuubi]

Is it just me, or does using AI while learning to code make you feel simultaneously like a genius and an absolute fraud? The imposter syndrome is crazy.

the loop I see people (and myself) fall into:

Get stuck → ask ChatGPT → it spits out 70 lines of pristine code → read it, think “ah yeah, that makes sense” → paste it in → test passes.

Then 30 minutes later, you open a blank file to try it yourself and your brain completely freezes.

It’s terrifying because reading working code tricks your brain into thinking you learned something. But reading code and writing code from scratch use two totally different parts of your brain. The AI fixed your bug, but your brain skipped the actual exercise. Now learning feels slower because you’re constantly fighting the urge to let an LLM auto-complete your thinking.

How are you guys handling this without letting your brain turn to mush? Are you banning AI entirely until you hit a certain point, or do you have a strict rule for when you allow yourself to open the prompt box? What’s your learning workflow like lets talk about it

[ILM]

do not use AI while learning, instead ask for help from other people if you are stuck

[Teller]

Welcome to the forum @Unmarked-Kyuubi

Here is a post you may find helpful:

How do you use AI without letting it do the learning for you?

Welcome to the forum @nb_fcc_forum_1 AI has certain use cases. For learning though, AI can sometimes confidently give misleading information. Think of it as a tool. You’ll learn more using hand tools first, rather than jumping straight to power tools. When you are experienced enough, using power tools / AI can let you do things faster / better and the learning curve isn’t that great. With a solid foundation, you can tell when AI makes mistakes and take corrective action. Plus, in the real w…

Happy coding

[Dylinus]

I only use it if I’m desperate and if I’m on a short time frame

[moT01]

I’m feeling something, not sure it’s brain rot - my process is more like…

Me: “I was thinking about doing approach one, what do you think?”

LLM: “Yes, [insert explanation]. I’d do approach 1.”

Me: “And what do you think about approach two?”

LLM: “I like it, [insert explanation]. I would go with that one instead.”

Me: “So you don’t like approach 1 anymore?”

LLM: “My mistake, [insert explanation], Approach 1 is better after all.”

Me:

[veinlim92]

I use AI while learning to code… But, I include this line just before my questions to ask AI.
“Don’t give solution, just give me some hints to guide me.”

I do believe the most precious part of the coding journey is the process of thinking and cracking down problems using my own brain, not copy-pasting AI’s thinking.

[html_carlos]

I normally help myself using MDN Web Docs and AI. First, I look into the data structure for the topic and analyze it. If I can’t figure it out after a few attempts, I ask AI to guide me through.

No professional software engineer memorizes every API, method signature, or DOM manipulation parameter. Real software engineering isn’t about memorization; it’s about problem-solving, architecture, and logic.

Using Web Docs means you know how to find ground truth efficiently. Developers who read documentation are often better at their job because they build solutions on actual specifications rather than memory or guesswork.

Using AI to guide you when you get stuck is no different than asking a senior developer a question during office hours or doing a code review. The key distinction comes down to active learning vs. passive copying

So, my advice is to use every resource available to you.