adjl posted...
Really, Discord has the same problem that real-life conversations have for people that are a little (or a lot) socially awkward, which is that unless you have something to contribute to whatever's being said at a given moment, you don't really have an opportunity to participate in the conversation. Discord can be a bit of an improvement there because people with niche interests who have trouble making IRL small talk because they don't share enough interests/experiences with most people they encounter can more easily find a decent-sized community of people that do share those interests/experiences, but more general discussions still fall into the same issue.
No, I understand this too and experience it myself. But it's not too hard to reference a post from a day or two ago, depending on how quickly the chat progresses and respond with something relevant. And if it does feel awkward, you can just lead with a "So I'm totally late to the conversation, but". Most people aren't going to be weirded out about this and even bring the conversation back again. Personally, I find it easier than in person group conversations, because there really is no smooth way of bringing back a conversation that has moved on from 20 minutes ago. And I don't need to look at everyone's judging eyes, so there's no reservation.
And at least in your case, from how you post here, you have enough social awareness and are intelligent enough not to do weird shit like post random stuff in the wrong rooms or respond with random emotes. You're one of the better posters here and I'm sure most communities would welcome you openly.