I mean you're going to have to use the messaging platform which people actually use if you don't want to be a hermit. Create a burner Instagram account, buy a cheap android burner phone if you have the money and are super concerned, and get on with life.

This isn't a gen z thing, this is how the world works. I have to use WhatsApp daily to talk to my friends and family. I don't like it at all, but if I did not do it, I'd have no communication with them.