iOS 12 Updated iPhone 8 Freezes / Keyboard issues

I recently updated my iPhone 8 (less than a year old, 64gb with 10gb free space, 90% battery health) to iOS 12. No noticeable issues for a day or so ... Then I tried to post to Instagram, the keyboard was visible but unresponsive and eventually Insta froze altogether.

I have tried several soft reboots and get the same issues.

Whatsapp freezes when I try to start typing or sometimes before.

iMessage freezes at the messages list and I'm not receiving new messages.

Safari is unresponsive.

Basically any app involving the keyboard is now useless -- Does anyone else have these issues??