I think you are right about it being about money, reward and interactions. I was, as everyone, badly surprised about the debacle, and I clearly noticed a lot of people of my feed taking a break. Some started posting a bit earlier, and clearly their rewards were much less than their usual amount.
I hope you someday get to a level where you can distribute $20 rewards 😄
Glad to see you are back, I was missing my alternative weekend fix!