This is very true. It may also be psychological. I spent many years deathly afraid of people, not crowds, but individuals. I would literally make worry so much about what I was doing that I would make myself sick (sometimes to the point of throwing up). It took a long time to realize that I could be ok around people.

But I digress. Teddy Bear is right, it's a slow step by step process. Find something you like and know about and see if there's a group that is also interested in it. You're not looking for a date, just practice speaking to people, and it's always easier when you can speak with some confidence.
Good luck. And hey, Chicago is great, wander downtown, I'm sure you can find something to do.

__________________
“Sometimes I think we're alone. Sometimes I think we're not. In either case, the thought is staggering.” - Buckminster Fuller

"A man talking sense to himself is no madder than a man talking nonsense not to himself." - Guildenstern, “Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead”