How do you balance feeling lonely and wanting to be alone?

Currently I have almost no balance. When I’m with people I want to slink away into some dark, fleece-blanket filled cave. When I’m alone I want every corner I turn to reveal some grand, laughter-laden party, or at least someone I can say Hi to. But then sometimes when I turn a corner I do see someone I know, and it’s back to the cave for me.

… Perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, but the basic sentiments are accurate. Sometimes I don’t mind being alone, sometimes I even think it’s better; but more often than not, being alone hurts… Still, it usually hurts more to be around other people. So I’m stuck in this state of restlessness, because neither response—isolating myself or putting myself into the fray—seems to resolve the issue.

If you have both impulses—how do you navigate them? Negotiate with them? Etc.