diff --git a/backend/app/main.py b/backend/app/main.py
index eabc30c..5c1da28 100644
--- a/backend/app/main.py
+++ b/backend/app/main.py
@@ -2,6 +2,10 @@
 import logging
 import os
 from contextlib import asynccontextmanager
+from dotenv import load_dotenv
+
+# Load .env file before anything else
+load_dotenv()
 
 from fastapi import FastAPI, Request, status
 from fastapi.middleware.cors import CORSMiddleware