I don't know about the life shattering part. It's generally agreed that nicotine is extremely addictive. And yet I don't think you'll find many, if any, people homeless purely out of a nicotine addiction.

Maybe you can count people getting cancer or burning their houses down as the life shattering consequences. But I'd argue this has less to do with the addiction to nicotine and more to do how nicotine is usually consumed. Plus the younger generation seems to have abandoned smoking and are getting their nicotine from vaping or Zyn instead.