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The 92% Accurate Secret That Predicts Your Future: Nick Bowditch
In this profound conversation, Nick Bowditch reveals how he went from Facebook's early days to becoming a therapist building revolutionary AI technology that's changing addiction recovery forever. After surviving his own drug addiction and multiple rehab stays, Nick is now pursuing his PhD in clinical psychology while developing "Sharon" - an AI algorithm that predicts addiction relapse with 92% accuracy by analyzing digital behavior patterns, speech, and linguistics. What makes this groundbreaking? Traditional therapy methods are often worse than chance at predicting relapse, while Sharon can't be "bullshitted" like human therapists can be.
Discover why addiction in 2025 looks completely different - it's no longer primarily drugs or alcohol, but behavioral addictions to work, shopping, food, sex, and porn, all rooted in childhood trauma. Nick shares the life-changing insight that the harsh inner voice most people carry isn't actually theirs - it's someone else's voice from childhood that became internalized. Learn his simple but powerful "silly sausage" technique for transforming brutal self-talk into kindness, and his three-question reality check system that stops mental spirals: "Is it real? Can I change it? Does it matter anyway?"
You'll hear incredible stories about anthropomorphising his AI into a "person" he spends hours with daily, why he chose the name Sharon (and why Karen didn't make the cut), his experience lying for Australia as a drug addict, and the moment becoming a father triggered his deepest mental health challenges. Nick reveals why authenticity is actually easier than pretending, how the "cheapest seats" always have the loudest critics, and his definition of flow: "being able to do things without trying while still killing it."
This isn't just another tech or therapy story - it's a raw, honest exploration of trauma, recovery, and how AI might revolutionise mental health treatment while helping us understand the voices that drive our behaviour.
02:06 - Meet Sharon: 92% accurate addiction relapse prediction AI
04:05 - Why traditional therapy fails at predicting relapse
21:14 - Addiction in 2025: behavioral vs. substance-based
23:08 - Why all addiction traces back to childhood trauma
15:18 - The inner voice revelation: it's not actually yours
39:19 - The "silly sausage" self-talk transformation technique
49:47 - Three reality-check questions that stop mental spirals
28:16 - Why authenticity is easier than pretending
53:52 - How Sharon got her name (and why not Karen)
06:00 - Anthropomorphizing AI: spending time with Sharon daily
24:13 - How becoming a father triggered mental health crisis
12:00 - The peer review process and defending controversial work
59:56 - What "flow" means: accomplishing without trying
Follow Nick Bowditch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickbowditch
Follow Mark Kentwell:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mark_kentwell
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mark_kentwell
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markkentwell1
Mark's Businesses:
Presence Real Estate: https://presence.realestate/
Nexr: https://nexr.com.au/
View all episodes
By Mark KentwellIn this profound conversation, Nick Bowditch reveals how he went from Facebook's early days to becoming a therapist building revolutionary AI technology that's changing addiction recovery forever. After surviving his own drug addiction and multiple rehab stays, Nick is now pursuing his PhD in clinical psychology while developing "Sharon" - an AI algorithm that predicts addiction relapse with 92% accuracy by analyzing digital behavior patterns, speech, and linguistics. What makes this groundbreaking? Traditional therapy methods are often worse than chance at predicting relapse, while Sharon can't be "bullshitted" like human therapists can be.
Discover why addiction in 2025 looks completely different - it's no longer primarily drugs or alcohol, but behavioral addictions to work, shopping, food, sex, and porn, all rooted in childhood trauma. Nick shares the life-changing insight that the harsh inner voice most people carry isn't actually theirs - it's someone else's voice from childhood that became internalized. Learn his simple but powerful "silly sausage" technique for transforming brutal self-talk into kindness, and his three-question reality check system that stops mental spirals: "Is it real? Can I change it? Does it matter anyway?"
You'll hear incredible stories about anthropomorphising his AI into a "person" he spends hours with daily, why he chose the name Sharon (and why Karen didn't make the cut), his experience lying for Australia as a drug addict, and the moment becoming a father triggered his deepest mental health challenges. Nick reveals why authenticity is actually easier than pretending, how the "cheapest seats" always have the loudest critics, and his definition of flow: "being able to do things without trying while still killing it."
This isn't just another tech or therapy story - it's a raw, honest exploration of trauma, recovery, and how AI might revolutionise mental health treatment while helping us understand the voices that drive our behaviour.
02:06 - Meet Sharon: 92% accurate addiction relapse prediction AI
04:05 - Why traditional therapy fails at predicting relapse
21:14 - Addiction in 2025: behavioral vs. substance-based
23:08 - Why all addiction traces back to childhood trauma
15:18 - The inner voice revelation: it's not actually yours
39:19 - The "silly sausage" self-talk transformation technique
49:47 - Three reality-check questions that stop mental spirals
28:16 - Why authenticity is easier than pretending
53:52 - How Sharon got her name (and why not Karen)
06:00 - Anthropomorphizing AI: spending time with Sharon daily
24:13 - How becoming a father triggered mental health crisis
12:00 - The peer review process and defending controversial work
59:56 - What "flow" means: accomplishing without trying
Follow Nick Bowditch:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nickbowditch
Follow Mark Kentwell:
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mark_kentwell
TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mark_kentwell
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/markkentwell1
Mark's Businesses:
Presence Real Estate: https://presence.realestate/
Nexr: https://nexr.com.au/