It is the easiest way to refer to it, without actually referring to the component parts.

Do you mean when you were breaking stuff?

Do you mean when you were refusing to go to school?

Do you mean when you were watching YouTube until 1am?

Do you mean when every second word that came out of your mouth was a curse?

None of them, thanks. The Time That Went Before suits me just fine. It is representative, not descriptive. We both know what we mean.

The Time That Went Before ended in two stages, in December 2016 when we moved house and in March 2017 when I read the statement to The Boy and the rest of our multi generational unit. There was progress and change in the gap but none as profound as the impact that the statement had on our home.