Once you get sufficiently familiar with some paradigm the training wheels can come off.
“Raw” SQL is already an abstraction. Over time all the implicit magic will get on your nerves. Trying to shoehorn two completely different worlds into one abstraction is not worth it: you get to learn today’s untransferable funky ORM syntax and idiosyncrasies while losing sight of the actual skill that matters long term which is SQL itself.
I concede however that handling of SQL, the field names, the relations, is annoying. But it’s core to the problem you are probably solving (some form of CRUD). Plumbing is annoying but as a plumber I’d say get used to it instead of wishing to be dancer.
I notice this in other aspects of my work as well. When I switched away trom desktop environment to terminal I had the same feeling. It’s easier, less hassle, less wonky abstractions, more direct. Completely counter to what popular culture is telling me.