The author details the effect of the horrors of cumulative trauma on survivors of the Holocaust and their children. Characteristics of the "survivor syndrome" are outlined, among them the impairment of parenting ability, especially in regard to empathy, which results in the transmission of trauma to the second generation. An armoring of the ego, a false self, and "robotization" are used to deal with anxiety. Among the many other tragic aftereffects of the Holocaust which Grubrich-Simitis cites is that the anxiety evoked by identification with those who have suffered such unimaginable horror and degradation makes it difficult for anyone, including therapists, to relate empathically to the experience of the Holocaust victim.