Honest questions

Am I addicted to nicotine?

Updated 2026-07-11 · Grounded in: Heatherton et al. 1991 (FTND) · time-to-first-cigarette research

One question answers most of it: how soon after waking do you reach for the first cigarette or vape? Within half an hour — and especially within five minutes — is the strongest single sign of physical dependence that smoking research has found. It says more than how many you smoke, because overnight the body empties of nicotine, and how urgently it demands a refill is dependence in its rawest form. The full picture takes six questions — the Fagerström test, the standard dependence measure used in cessation clinics worldwide — and you can take it privately here in about three minutes, no name, no account.

What dependence actually looks like

Beyond the morning cigarette: smoking more in the first hours of the day. Finding no-smoking places genuinely hard, not just annoying. Smoking through illness. The one cigarette you'd defend hardest — usually the first. Vaping changes the container, not the chemistry; the same signals apply.

And dependence is only half the story. Habit — the coffee, the break, the drive — has its own grip, which is why a plan around triggers beats bare willpower even for light smokers.

A private way to check

The check-in here uses the real Fagerström questions. Three minutes, private by default, and the result is plain: how strong the dependence looks, and one first step that fits it. Higher dependence usually means support — like nicotine replacement discussed with a pharmacist or doctor — genuinely improves the odds; the result says so honestly when it applies.

Honest limits

A screening tool estimates how risky a pattern looks — it cannot diagnose anyone. Only a qualified clinician can do that, with a real conversation.
Scores describe the recent past you reported. They don't define you, and they change when the pattern changes.
An honest result needs honest answers, and it's normal for the first attempt to soften things. The tool works best as a private conversation with yourself.

A private way to check where you stand

Three minutes, the same validated screening questions clinicians use, no name and no account. You get a plain-words result and one first step — and crisis support stays free either way.

Start the free check-in

Common questions

Is vaping addiction the same as smoking addiction?

The chemistry is the same — nicotine — and dependence reads the same way: how soon after waking, how hard it is to go without. Adapted versions of the standard test exist for vaping, and the check-in here covers both.

I only smoke a few a day — can I still be dependent?

Yes. Count matters less than pattern. If the first one comes soon after waking, or going without feels genuinely hard, dependence is doing some of the driving even at low volume.

What does the Fagerström score change?

It tells you which kind of quitting support fits. Higher scores mean the body is more involved, and nicotine replacement or medication (discussed with a clinician) meaningfully raises success rates. Lower scores point at habit and triggers as the main work.

Can I check privately?

Yes — no name, no account, about three minutes, and you can delete everything whenever you want.

What happens after the check-in?

An immediate plain-words result with a free first step. A paid plan can then track your trend week by week — and where clinical support like NRT would help, the result says so and points you to the right conversation.

The Mansio is a private wellness, education, and behaviour-change support tool. It is not a medical device, not therapy, and not a substitute for professional medical or mental-health care. If you're in crisis, call your local emergency number — crisis help is always free and never requires an account.