Let's just concede that not everyone will get to the level that you were at. They probably won't get to the level that even I am at. Each situation is different, and if you are deathly ill, a doctor should be involved, and you should do what is necessary to stay alive.
On the other hand, if I had not told the doctors I was not taking anymore of their steroids, I would probably be dead. They wanted me to just reduce the dosage or "take a break" from them. Something told me that was not right, so I quit taking them.