HR Teams Are Burned Out Too: Who's Holding Space for the People Holding the Culture Together?
- Victoria Isikman
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
Updated: 4 days ago
You spend your days holding space.
For the employee going through a divorce. For the manager who doesn't know how to have hard conversations. For the leadership team navigating layoffs. For the new hire who's struggling to find their footing.
You're the one people come to when things fall apart.
You're the keeper of the culture. The emotional backbone. The person who makes sure everyone else feels seen, supported, and safe.
But here's the question no one seems to be asking:
Who's holding space for you?
The Quiet Crisis Nobody's Talking About
Let's be honest about what's happening right now.
Nearly half of HR professionals have identified burnout as the biggest business risk for 2026. A third are considering leaving their roles entirely.
And perhaps most telling: 61 percent of HR professionals say that after supporting everyone else's wellbeing, they have little energy left for their own.
This isn't surprising. It's inevitable.
You carry what psychologists call "chronic empathic load": the cumulative weight of managing other people's crises, emotions, and conflicts day after day. Without adequate recovery time. Without anyone checking in on you.
The demands keep rising. Employee expectations are higher than ever. Case complexity is increasing. Mental health conversations are more frequent and more intense.
But staffing levels? They've remained flat for over six years.
You're doing more with less. And you're doing it while being expected to show up with energy, warmth, and emotional availability every single day.
No wonder 71 percent of HR leaders report higher stress since stepping into leadership roles.
The Paradox of Being the Culture Keeper
Here's what makes this so complicated:
Organizations are finally recognizing the strategic importance of HR. 88 percent of business leaders now view HR as essential to success. More than half of senior HR professionals report directly to the CEO.
That's progress.
But recognition hasn't translated into support.
The systems designed to care for employees? They rarely extend to the people running those systems.
The wellness programs you implement for everyone else? You're often too busy facilitating them to actually participate.
The psychological safety you work so hard to create? It doesn't always exist within HR departments themselves.
You're holding the culture together.
But nothing is holding you.
Why Traditional "Self-Care" Isn't Cutting It
You've probably heard the advice:
Take more breaks. Set better boundaries. Practice mindfulness.
And sure, those things help. A little.
But let's be real.
When you're back-to-back in meetings about other people's problems, a 10-minute meditation isn't going to reset your nervous system.
When you're carrying the emotional weight of an entire organization, a wellness webinar isn't going to restore your sense of self.
What you need isn't another thing to add to your to-do list.
What you need is someone else to hold the space for a change.
A moment where you don't have to facilitate. Don't have to manage. Don't have to be "on."
A moment where you can just... be.
The Reset for the Resetters
This is why we created something different.
At VFA Creative Events, we design fully facilitated creative workshops specifically for teams who spend their days pouring into everyone else.
Teams like yours.
The premise is simple:
You show up. We handle everything else.
No planning on your end. No logistics to manage. No facilitation guide to follow.
Just arrive. Breathe. Create.
Our workshops use analog art: painting, mixed media, hands-on creativity: as a vehicle for stress relief and genuine human connection. There's no right or wrong way to participate. No artistic skill required. No performance pressure.
Just color, texture, rhythm, and the quiet joy of making something with your hands.
It's the opposite of everything you do at work.
And that's exactly the point.
Why Creativity Works When Other Wellness Doesn't
There's science behind this.
Creative activities activate different neural pathways than cognitive work. They engage the parasympathetic nervous system: the part of your brain responsible for rest, recovery, and calm.
When you're mixing paint colors or working with texture, you're not analyzing. You're not problem-solving. You're not holding space for anyone else's emotions.
You're just present.
In your body. In the moment. In flow.
For HR professionals carrying chronic empathic load, this kind of reset isn't a luxury.
It's a necessity.
Fully Facilitated Means You Actually Get to Rest
Here's what we hear from HR teams all the time:
"I love the idea of team wellness activities, but I'm always the one organizing them. By the time the event happens, I'm exhausted."
We get it.
That's why our workshops are designed so you don't have to lift a finger.
✔ We bring all materials and supplies ✔ We handle setup and cleanup ✔ We facilitate the entire experience ✔ We create the environment so your team can simply arrive and exhale
You get to be a participant, not a coordinator.
You get to receive care instead of always giving it.
That distinction matters more than you might realize.
Options That Fit Your Team
We offer three workshop formats depending on your team size and needs:
Creative Workshop : Perfect for smaller HR teams or leadership retreats. An intimate setting for deep connection and personal restoration.
Corporate Event : Ideal for mid-sized People & Culture departments. Enough space for your whole team to experience creative wellness together.
Large Corporate Event : Designed for bigger organizations or company-wide HR appreciation days. Up to 50 participants, fully facilitated, zero stress on your end.
Each format includes everything you need for a meaningful experience. You just choose the one that fits.
We'll take care of the rest. https://www.victoriasfineart.com/corporate-events
What Actually Happens in the Room
When HR teams come to our workshops, something shifts.
The facilitator they usually are? They get to let go of that role.
The emotional armor they wear at work? It softens.
The laughter that gets buried under back-to-back meetings? It surfaces.
People who spend their days navigating difficult conversations get to have easy ones instead. People who absorb everyone else's stress get to release their own.
And here's what we've noticed:
When HR teams experience genuine restoration, they bring that energy back to the organization.
The culture keepers become better culture keepers: not because they worked harder, but because someone finally took care of them.
An Invitation, Not an Assignment
If you've read this far, you probably recognize yourself in these words.
The exhaustion. The invisible labor. The longing for someone to hold space for you the way you hold it for everyone else.
This is your invitation.
Not another task. Not another wellness initiative to manage.
Just a chance to put down the weight for a few hours. To be held instead of holding. To create something beautiful without any pressure to get it right.
Your team deserves this.
And honestly?
So do you.
When you're ready to explore what a creative reset could look like for your HR team, we'd love to create something together.
No pressure. No rush.
Just possibility.
Comments