diff --git a/src/chat/services/chat.svelte.ts b/src/chat/services/chat.svelte.ts
index bf28d5a..f9704b1 100644
--- a/src/chat/services/chat.svelte.ts
+++ b/src/chat/services/chat.svelte.ts
@@ -112,8 +112,8 @@ export class ChatService {
       // 1. Play sound
       this.playMessageSound(channelId, senderIdentity);
 
-      // 2. System Notification (only if not from us and not muted)
-      if (!senderIdentity.isEqual(this.identity || Identity.zero()) && !this.isChannelMuted(channelId)) {
+      // 2. System Notification (only if not from us and notifications are enabled)
+      if (!senderIdentity.isEqual(this.identity || Identity.zero()) && this.isChannelNotificationsEnabled(channelId)) {
         if ("Notification" in window && Notification.permission === "granted") {
           const isDm = this.#db.directMessages.some(d => d.channelId === channelId);
           const isMention = text.includes(`<@${this.identity?.toHexString()}>`);
diff --git a/src/chat/services/messaging.svelte.ts b/src/chat/services/messaging.svelte.ts
index cb472c5..c43bddc 100644
--- a/src/chat/services/messaging.svelte.ts
+++ b/src/chat/services/messaging.svelte.ts
@@ -99,19 +99,18 @@ export class MessagingService {
 
     // Incremental update logic for visible messages
     const seenMessageIds = new Set<bigint>();
-    let isFirstEmit = true;
+    let initialSyncComplete = false;
 
     visibleMessagesStore.subscribe((v) => {
         if (v.length > 0) {
-          console.log(`[MessagingService] Received batch of ${v.length} messages. First emit: ${isFirstEmit}`);
+          console.log(`[MessagingService] Received batch of ${v.length} messages. Initial sync complete: ${initialSyncComplete}`);
         }
 
         // If this is a new batch, identify truly new messages
         for (const msg of v) {
           if (!seenMessageIds.has(msg.id)) {
-            // Only trigger notifications if this isn't the very first time we see data
-            // and the service is generally ready.
-            if (!isFirstEmit && this.onMessageReceived) {
+            // Only trigger notifications if the initial database sync is fully complete
+            if (initialSyncComplete && this.onMessageReceived) {
               console.log(`[MessagingService] Dispatching notification for message ${msg.id}`);
               this.onMessageReceived({
                 channelId: msg.channelId,
@@ -125,11 +124,6 @@ export class MessagingService {
           }
         }
 
-        if (v.length > 0 && isFirstEmit) {
-          console.log(`[MessagingService] Initial message load complete. Disabling first emit suppression.`);
-          isFirstEmit = false;
-        }
-
         recentMessages = v;
         this.#updateBuckets([...recentMessages, ...scrollbackMessages]);
 
@@ -143,6 +137,7 @@ export class MessagingService {
       console.log(`[MessagingService] Global sync status: ${v}`);
       this.isGlobalSyncDone = v;
       if (v) {
+          initialSyncComplete = true;
           const cid = untrack(() => this.#nav.activeChannelId);
           if (cid) {
               this.#readyChannels.add(cid);