Channel 39-55 in Human Design: The Meaning of Gate 39, Gate 55, and the Channel of Emoting
- Kelly Harrington, MS, RD
- Sep 3
- 8 min read
Updated: Oct 10
I discovered human design when my two boys were 6 and 8 years old. My older son is a 2/4 Manifesting Generator with Emotional Authority, and his Solar Plexus Center is defined by Channel 39-55, the Channel of Emoting. This is an individual emotional wave, and the emotions are felt as high highs and low lows. It’s an emotional experience that is typically either above the clouds or below the clouds, with very little time in between.
Gate 39 in Human Design (The Gate of Provocation)
Gate 39 is the Gate of Provocation. The I Ching name is Obstruction. Its energy is about pushing, testing, or provoking others in order to spark transformation, creativity, or emotional clarity. It has a liberating intention. It isn’t provocation just for the sake of conflict, but a way of stirring something deeper and waking people up to new feelings or perspectives.
Gate 39 can show up as playfully or challengingly pushing boundaries. In its highest expression, 39 provokes spiritual growth and emotional awareness. This energy gets things moving all for the sake of liberation. In its low expression, it can feel like irritation, button-pushing, or stirring conflict without purpose.
Gate 55 in Human Design (The Gate of Spirit)
Gate 55 is the Gate of Spirit, but even moreso it's the Abundance of Spirit (aka: freedom). The I Ching name is Abundance. The 55 is often called the most “spirit-driven” gate in Human Design because it teaches us that true abundance is an inner state, not tied to circumstances. When you have abundance of spirit, you attract all the good things.
Your Spirit is deeply connected to emotional abundance and it's mood-depedent. When the emotional wave is high, there’s creativity, hope, and a sense of infinite possibility. When the wave is low, it can feel dark, bluesly, and like nothing is working and spirit has disappeared.
A key life lesson of this gate 55 is learning to trust that the Spirit always returns.
Channel 39-55 in Human Design: Emotions and Spirit
Together, Gate 39 and Gate 55 form the Channel of Emoting (39-55). This is a deeply emotional channel that connects provocation with the spirit of abundance. It carries the potential for emotional depth, creativity, and awakening, but it also moves through cycles of highs and lows.
People with the 39-55 channel are here to provoke spirit in themselves and in others. They test what feels meaningful, what stirs passion, and what aligns with true spirit. It’s a channel that embodies the truth that abundance isn’t a constant external condition but an ever-shifting inner experience.
Parenting a Child With Channel 39-55: Emotional Highs and Lows
Shortly after my son turned two, I started noticing emotional highs and lows, and sometimes his meltdowns would last for hours. He was very physical (hitting, throwing things, biting, etc). I later learned he has gate 39 (the provocateur) and gate 38 (the fighter) in his unconscious Sun and Earth gates. The unconscious side is connected to the physical body, so the fighting came out in a very physical way (vs a verbal fight).
During a toddler meltdown one evening, I remember making an off-the-cuff comment to my husband: “Is he bipolar?” I logically knew he wasn’t, but as a new mom, I wasn’t sure if the frequent emotional highs and lows was ‘normal' behavior.
With my undefined solar plexus, I was unknowingly amplifying some very intense emotions from his 39-55 Channel, which made the situation worse. I got to the point I didn’t even recognize myself with my anger, nor did I like how I was parenting and showing up for my son. I was emotionally dysregulated to the point I was experiencing major adrenal dysfunction, anxiety, sadness, hypothyroidism, and I essentially abandoned my own wants and desires.
Searching for Support and Human Design Realizations
I went on a journey to help my son through nutrition, therapy, tests, etc. with the intention of leveling out his moods. I chuckle about this now that I know his human design. I realize his highs and lows are mechanical and it's just not realistic to think he can level his emotions out all the time. My perspective on his emotions started to shift. I realized there’s nothing “wrong” with him. He doesn’t need fixed, and in addition, I didn’t do anything wrong as a mom to cause the ups and downs.
But I also knew I needed to regulate my own emotions so I wasn’t so reactive to the emotional energy he was putting off. It wasn’t until four years later when I finally discovered Human Design! Learning about the interplay between my son’s emotional wave in the 39-55 channel and my undefined solar plexus was such a lightbulb moment! This energetic dynamic had been my biggest parenting challenge and lesson in life! Human design gave me words for what was going on and a useful treasure map to use to start improving the situation between us.
Traveling With a Child Who Has Channel 39-55
When it comes to traveling, being together 24/7 is a challenge, especially when you combine emotionally defined people with emotionally undefined people. But human design is unbelievably helpful, giving me awareness and tools to support my son.
My husband and I love to travel, and since we both work from home, we’ve been lucky to travel for extended periods of time. Our first long trip was in 2016 when my son was five and we lived in Puerto Rico for a month. It was such a wonderful family experience that we started doing it almost every summer.
I’ve learned some ways to support my son when we travel. First, I always try to rent accommodations so my two kids have their own room. When my son is in an emotional low or wants to hermit (2 line), having a space for himself helps him decompress and reset. I know the extra room is a luxury and more expensive, but man is it worth it for everyone’s sanity!
Europe and the Social vs. Antisocial Wave
When we traveled through Europe for five weeks, my son was 10 yo and his moods were intense. We were together 24/7 so he wasn’t getting enough 2 line hermit time. He is/was still learning how to handle his emotional lows, so he often lashed out at the family. After about two weeks, he had lost interest in walking around historical towns to sightsee. In his words, “I don’t want to see another castle.” This was a classic gate 55 in a low – when spirit is low, the experience doesn’t land. No matter how special or exciting it seems from the outside, his refusal was more about not being in the spirit to receive or enjoy the castles.
Forcing him to sightsee made the lows last longer and more intense, which makes everyone miserable. These are the times when the provocateur and fighter (gates 39 & 38) would show up in their lowest expression. In my human design readings, I describe this individual wave as social vs antisocial, and this is the perfect example. If he tries to be social when he’s in a low, it only intensifies his emotional wave and makes the low last even longer.
Learning to Honor Alone Time
To navigate my son's emotions while traveling, we did a trial and error with leaving him at the Airbnb alone. At first it was for one hour and eventually up to three hours. He loved it.
We even removed the TV remote control so he couldn’t just watch TV the entire time, which was something he agreed to. Instead, he would draw, make paper airplanes, draw mazes, listen to music, read his book, cuddle with his stuffed horsey, or take a nap. I was always impressed by the creative ways he entertained himself while he was alone.
Channel 39-55 is a deeply creative energy, especially when it’s expressed during an emotional low. I call it the Van Gogh energy because Vincent Van Gogh created his best art when he was in his bluesy, depressed moods. This is an example of art being born out of gate 55’s creative spirit and emotional depth, which is the high expression.
Meanwhile, my other son, my husband, and I could go sightseeing in peace. When we returned to the Airbnb, my son was always in a very happy mood and never felt like he missed anything. This made my heart happy. The FOMO was mine, not his.
The Unpredictable Emotional Low
Most recently, we were in Hawaii, my son (now 13 yo), woke up in an emotional low. He had plans for the day, but he wasn’t in the mood at all. He was grumpy, argumentative, judgmental, and negative toward all of us – classic example of why it’s ideal to be anti-social during a low.
This is the thing about an emotional wave: it’s mechanical and unpredictable. Even in a beautiful location with a fun plan, his mood didn’t reflect that situation whatsoever. This is how gate 55 works. The spirit and abundance aren’t dependent on outside circumstances. How confusing that must feel to him!
The low also zaps his energy, making him tired or lethargic. I could see his mind wanting to do the activity, but his spirit was low and his body won’t move. Luckily, I understand his design and what’s going on with his wave. I talk to him about it and validate his feelings, reminding him “this shall pass,” and encourage him to take time alone.
Gate 55’s Spirit and Abundance in Human Design
Also while we were in Hawaii, my son had an idea to send a message in a bottle into the ocean. He envisioned the letter looking old and tattered, like it was from the 1800s.
He couldn’t stop talking about this project and got super creative. He soaked paper in coffee grounds to stain it to look old, bought wax to melt over the cork just like they did in the 1800’s, and insisted the letter be written in a calligraphy style handwriting. I can really see gate 55’s energy of creativity, spirit, and emotional highs shining through. When he is on an emotional high, everything feels possible.
My husband and son researched the Hawaiian ocean currents to find the perfect beach where the current pulled away from shore. They swam out as far as they could and sent their message into the ocean.
For me, this whole project and experience embodied Gate 55’s creativity, excitement, abundance and trust in life’s flow.
Embracing Human Design as a Parenting Guide
Because of Human Design I became the mom leader who teaches my kids to understand who they are, how they process emotions, and what they’re here to do at a young age.
It hasn’t always been easy, but learning about Channel 39-55, Gate 39, and Gate 55 in Human Design has transformed my parenting—and helped me support my son’s emotional highs and lows with more compassion, creativity, and trust.
I hope you enjoyed my stories and just some of my life lessons with channel 39-55.
Human Design Appointments
Moving from where you are now to where you want to be requires long-term dedication to learning and experimenting with your human design. I've learned so much through the process of researching, observing myself and others, experimenting, and repeating that cycle over and over.
I believe growth requires more than one appointment, which is why I offer an initial appointment (90 minutes) with a follow-up appointment (60 minutes).
Much love,
Kelly Harrington, MS, RD
Registered Dietitian, Nutrition Coach, and Human Design analyst