diff --git a/src/useFormState.test.tsx b/src/useFormState.test.tsx
index 94f00dd..e75074d 100644
--- a/src/useFormState.test.tsx
+++ b/src/useFormState.test.tsx
@@ -1,8 +1,8 @@
 import { click, clickAndWait, render, typeAndWait, wait } from "@homebound/rtl-utils";
 import { act } from "@testing-library/react";
 import { makeAutoObservable, reaction } from "mobx";
-import { Observer } from "mobx-react";
-import { useMemo, useState } from "react";
+import { observer, Observer } from "mobx-react";
+import { useMemo, useRef, useState } from "react";
 import { TextField } from "src/FormStateApp";
 import { ObjectConfig } from "src/config";
 import { ObjectState } from "src/fields/objectField";
@@ -117,6 +117,31 @@ describe("useFormState", () => {
     expect(r.baseElement.textContent).toEqual("");
   });
 
+  it("uses init.onlyOnce to not react to identity changes", async () => {
+    // Given a component
+    type FormValue = Pick<AuthorInput, "firstName">;
+    const config: ObjectConfig<FormValue> = { firstName: { type: "value" } };
+    const TestComponent = observer(() => {
+      // And we have an `init` value that is dynamic, so we can observe whether init reruns
+      const renderCount = useRef(0).current++;
+      const form = useFormState({
+        config,
+        init: { input: { firstName: `${renderCount}` }, onlyOnce: true },
+      });
+      const [, setTick] = useState(0);
+      return (
+        <div>
+          <button data-testid="change" onClick={() => setTick(1)} />
+          <div data-testid="firstName">{form.firstName.value}</div>
+        </div>
+      );
+    });
+    const r = await render(<TestComponent />);
+    expect(r.firstName).toHaveTextContent("0");
+    click(r.change);
+    expect(r.firstName).toHaveTextContent("0");
+  });
+
   it("keeps local changed values when a query refreshes", async () => {
     // Given a component
     function TestComponent() {
diff --git a/src/useFormState.ts b/src/useFormState.ts
index ab3fc1f..ccc1700 100644
--- a/src/useFormState.ts
+++ b/src/useFormState.ts
@@ -11,6 +11,7 @@ export type InputAndMap<T, I> = {
   input: I;
   map?: (input: Exclude<I, null | undefined>) => T;
   ifUndefined?: T;
+  onlyOnce?: boolean;
 };
 
 export type QueryAndMap<T, I> = {
@@ -98,7 +99,13 @@ export function useFormState<T, I>(opts: UseFormStateOpts<T, I>): ObjectState<T>
   const [firstInitValue] = useState(() => initValue(config, init));
   const isWrappingMobxProxy = !isPlainObject(firstInitValue);
   // If they're using init.input, useMemo on it (and it might be an array), otherwise allow the identity of init be unstable
-  const dep = isInput(init) ? makeArray(init.input) : isQuery(init) ? [init.query.data, init.query.loading] : [];
+  const dep = isInput(init)
+    ? init.onlyOnce
+      ? []
+      : makeArray(init.input)
+    : isQuery(init)
+      ? [init.query.data, init.query.loading]
+      : [];
 
   const form = useMemo(
     () => {