when i first started ctb i was confused as hell too. things i missed were:
you need to follow the droplets all the way from fruit to fruit, they simulate sliders.
the shift key. i wasn't comfortable with that, so i changed it to 0 on the numeric part of the keyboard. i'm still not good at it much, but so far i didn't really need to use it. you can pass easy, normal and some hard without using the dash thing.
when approaching the spinner (bananas) just quickly dash back and forth to collect most of them. they just give bonus, it doesn't mind if you miss some of them.
also the easy/half time mods can help you to get used to the ctb style. you'll get into it quickly. i actually like it quite a bit more than osu! standard tbh.
i am playing ctb for like 2 months and i'm now #93 on my country's performance ranking. and i only play easy/normal and hard maps! (also i think it depends on how many people play ctb in your country lmao). i find it actually pretty easy to get S or SS on a ctb map.
just play play play and you'll get better. guaranteed.