As someone who grew up in a very small town with exactly one pub and no other shops, this is a bit melodramatic. You can just walk in, order a meal and a beer, talk to the publican, and work out for yourself whether you like the place. There's something to like about most pubs.
The shops being further away also isn't a big deal. You'd think it would be annoying, but your habits quickly adapt. After running out of milk a couple of times, you learn to keep a can of evaporated milk in the cupboard. If you're out of eggs, you either have porridge for breakfast, defrost some frozen egg whites, or if it's really important you drive into town. It's not practically a problem.
From what I understand, the real things people struggle with are dealing with being alone, and learning how to have a social life with the different rules and constraints. My mum claims that when a new family moves to town, she can tell if they're going to leave by whether they leave the light on out the front of their house: the ones who're uncomfortable with darkness will go back, the others will stay. It's harder to maintain friendships unless you're organised, so clubs and groups are important to keep you socially active. Even your neighbours are further away and you don't have as many of them, so having a good relationship with them becomes more important than with neighbours in the city. In a small enough town you know everyone you see.
