early in life

:  near the beginning of a period of time

:  near the beginning of a course, process, or series

:  before the usual or expected time

:  of, relating to, or occurring near the beginning of a period of time, a development, or a series

:  distant in past time

:  primitive

:  the quality that distinguishes a vital and functional being from a dead body

:  a principle or force that is considered to underlie the distinctive quality of animate beings

:  an organismic state characterized by capacity for metabolism (see metabolism 1), growth, reaction to stimuli, and reproduction

:  of or relating to animate being

:  lifelong

:  using a living model