Social isolation has been an increasing part of the culture since we started replacing human interaction with 'social' media. When combined with the short duration of most pandemic isolation it seems more like people are trying to conflate loneliness with some external force rather than accepting that it is a normal human state.
This isn't an isolated thing, it had and continues to have runoff impacts. A lot of wild reactivity originated, you can see that in all the economic data. It's not a "short duration" it's borderline cataclysmic, maybe you're just too insulated to see it.
I enjoy golf the same way (chlling in the zone during a good workout, similar to a runners high).
I also happened to enjoy over 20,000 one-on-one interactions with work experience and technology, with the majority of it face-to-face.
Being "all people'd out (not tired of people, just not seeking empty calories for the sake of it)" is a 21st century perk.
The 1st world has always enjoyed "peace and quiet" for their own personal reasons :)