"It is a tough game, for sure, and there is no standard game plan works for everyone"
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You sound like my ophthalmologist and his approach to uveitis flares. In the beginning we started with steroid eye drops and added more and more eye drops as needed. Then we switched to low dose Prednisone. After I started low dose prednisone, I would increase by 5 mg increments all the way to 100 mg. That game plan never worked well.

My ophthalmologist said we needed a new game plan. We were going to "hit it hard" with 60 mg at the start of uveitis. If 60 mg didn't work right away then I needed to try 100 mg. He knew 100 mg of prednisone was my limit. He said we might need to try a different tactic after that.

Fortunately, uveitis responded quickly to high dose prednisone at the start followed by a fast taper. I didn't ever use the other tactic. My ophthalmologist said he had bigger guns that involved injections and infusions if 100 mg of prednisone failed.

The game plan sounded more like a war plan for stopping uveitis inflammation.

My rheumatologist wasn't as aggressive in her approach to PMR. She referred to a "stable dose" for an "extended period of time." That was a long war of attrition until we tried a "new approach" 12 years later. The new approach was tried after several reinforcements like methotrexate and leflunomide failed.

Actemra was more effective for my war on inflammation and there is less collateral damage to my body. Actemra is now my only defense against inflammation which is retreating.