useEffect returning context function with null value - reactjs

Question

I am using a context configuration (not redux) that consists of three files. A state file, reducer file, and context file. It makes an axios call to my Atlas MongoDB collection. I have tested the API using Postman and the get request works as intended, returning a series of transaction data.
The getTransactions() function in the useEffect hook will only return the requested data once. If I make any modifications to the code and save or navigate to a different page and return, the transactions array of objects is now defined as null. My first instinct was that I had an asynchronous syntax error but my understanding of useEffect is that it mitigates async issues.
The function in question looks like this:
const initialState = {
transactions: null,
current: null,
filtered: null,
error: null
};
const getTransactions = async () => {
try {
const res = await axios.get("/api/transactions");
dispatch({ type: GET_TRANSACTIONS, payload: res.data });
} catch (err) {
dispatch({ type: TRANSACTION_ERROR, payload: err.response.msg });
}
};
The reducer handles the type dispatched by the state function inside a switch statement:
case GET_TRANSACTIONS:
return {
...state,
transactions: action.payload,
loading: false,
};
I make the following call in my react component:
useEffect(() => {
getTransactions();
// eslint-disable-next-line
}, []);
My API is running on a node server that uses a route that first checks for user auth and then queries the database. Again, the API has been tested and returns the data as expected given there is a valid JWT auth token in the headers. The route is below:
router.get("/", auth, async (req, res) => {
try {
const transactions = await Transaction.find({ user: req.user.id }).sort({
date: -1,
});
res.json(transactions);
} catch (err) {
console.error(err.message);
res.status(500).send("Server Error");
}
});
I need to be able to have the data returned consistently in my component in an array of objects called transactions so it can be mapped to populate a DOM element. I have tried to provide as much of the code here as I felt was relevant but if I'm missing something, I can share that. All required imports have been doublechecked and are correct. I have not included the import lines in this question to conserve space. Thanks in advance!