Barbara Birke remained alert and conscious nearly up to the end, which came four days after the first signs of rash appeared on her body. For some reason, variola leaves its victims in a state of wakefulness. They see and feel everything that’s happening.
Controversial opinion time: Just end it. If you're at this point -
if your body has be totally overrun with disease; if your life has been whittled down to being nothing more than a bedridden, bloody, and excruciating bioreactor for an extremely contagious virus; if it's certainly fatal yet cruel enough to keep you conscious through the entire ordeal - just end it.
I understand that doctors and nurses must do no harm, but allowing someone to live through that kind of suffering is inhumane, especially when a simple injection or a mask of nitrogen could ease it.
