a period (in someone's life)

When something happens to a person for a few months or years, you can talk about that as "a period" in that person's life:

His teenage years were a very difficult period for him.

You can use the phrasal verb "go through" to talk about a period in someone's life:

It's not uncommon for retirees to go through a period of depression soon after they stop working.

Note that you can also talk about a historical period.

This phrase appears in these lessons: