@sophiahrz This is a very personal decision so only you can decide when to stop. I’m going to give you my anecdotes and reasons.
I’ve exclusively pumped now twice (still am). I do have a low supply due to IGT.
With my first I never intended to but he had hypotonia of his jaw and cheek muscles and I started pumping thinking we’d be able to nurse but he never could. Anecdotally, I did notice that when the whole house would get sick his symptoms (if any) were mild. This was also during the formula shortage so I pumped to avoid that mess as much as possible.
This second time my twins initially nursed like champs. But my daughter has had medical issues and being away from her brother so much he just gave up nursing and she followed suit a month later so I just kept pumping. Why? One cost. My daughter needs a special formula and it’s insanely expensive. I’m saving money by eating a special diet and pumping (I actually did the math). While formula is much more readily available now I still have seen shortages and had some difficulty. Even recently, my daughter’s specialized formula which I sometimes need to supplement was nowhere to be found on the shelves and a friend shipped me some she found in a store on the coast. I have also notice they don’t seem to get as sick when we have viruses running through the house but that is anecdotal.
I think this is a really personal decision. If you can afford the formula and don’t like pumping then by all means stop. But if you want to continue giving breastmilk or it’s saving you money that you need then continue. It’s really your decision.
Something else I don’t know I saw mentioned is that formula is very bland. Breastmilk typically is a little more “flavorful” based on what you eat which my pediatrician said can help when starting solids but I don’t know if that had any evidence based to it because I never bothered to look.
