Similarly story. I don’t know many people from my youth. I made a great group of friends about 27 from a random meetup. I lucked out, I know what you mean about them being mostly surface relationships. Even then, I moved to get a PhD so it’s been lonely again. I still have meet some great people during my PhD and have a partner now. It is super annoying for me that my partner had tons of childhood friends, but I am also super happy that he grew up ok even if I didn’t in that same way.

You will find your people they are out there, it has always taken me about a year to find a good group and even if you move, a couple will always stay friends. Finding people is time consuming and kind of impossible during the pandemic. Things will go back to normal eventually and a lot of people will be seeking connections and a new go on life.

I have a pretty severe depression as well. Limit your time on social media (said on Reddit), call/contact the connections you already have, start a new hobby or refine one even better if it’s one you can join a group with post pandemic, watch good movies (I’ve been going through the Gilmore Girls movie list, even if you are not a fan of GG, the movies are classics), read good books (the GG also have a book list, Lord of The Rings is always good, Terry Pratchett), and go on social distancing outing (you can listen to an audiobook on a walk, read outside, knit outside...)...

I’ve noticed reading books and watching movies have given me things to talk and think about besides politics and my depression which is one reason I think people are not connecting in this day and age, there is so much of everything that the only stuff we have in common is the bad (politic and pandemic) instead of reading the same books and watching the same shows.

Also: if you want someone to talk to about something, I am on Valley of the Dollys

https://letterboxd.com/lesaladino/list/every-movie-referenced-watched-in-gilmore/detail/