Personal Impact of Holocaust

How would you react, if you, like Elie, were surrounded by a multitude of death and suffering? Would everything you see and experience make you emotionally desensitized and unable to feel sympathy/empathy for those around you? Would all of the visible and palpable (felt) pain make you much more sensitive to the suffering of others? Would be more or less willing to help others survive? After you escaped from the situation, would what you went through have a lasting impact on you and what would be the impact? Finally, once away from the situation, what would you do to prevent a situation like the one you experienced from ever happening to anyone else again?