What if consciousness requires an active synapse loop to be maintained, kind of like a magnetic field, with little hysteresis eddies etc, but one that if it loses all power, it disappears forever?
[1] https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/001346...
In the end, this is a philosophical discussion because consciousness is not something we can observe in a way to test and falsify hypotheses.
It's a short story. A worthy, on-topic read, I promise!