A lot of people are ruined socially because of social media in my opinion. Consider that others may be feeling the same way.
I would recommend focusing on doing what you like instead of trying to force yourself into situations that you don’t. You’ll meet others along the way and you don’t even need to force it. Make the goal enjoying your time, enjoying the experience. Don’t make it about going to events you think you’ll like and then focusing in what others think about you. The people who hold you to some expectation in social situations that you aren’t interested in are not the friends you want.
Disposable e-cigarettes were a direct and immediate response to pod based vapes getting banned. Use to be, you would buy a device and just buy juice pods that were disposable. It still wasn’t great for waste, but that policy was a clear step in the wrong direction.
They saved children from using Juuls, just to fill the landfills with lithium batteries.