Should I switch to formula?

Question

My little guy is 6 months old. I have exclusively pumped since week one and he is a solid 20lb chunk. 😁
Although I REALLY wanted to give my LO my milk for 12 months, I’m tempted to switch to formula. I had surgery last week and while I still pumped, I had a lifting restriction and had a little break from baby care. Yesterday was my first day back on full time mom duty. I cried at the end of the day because I was so tired. That’s not healthy. Or completely unusual for me. So I’m finally considering formula. 
PROS:
-more me time/better mom. I spend 1.5-2 hrs pumping every day. This cuts into my sleep, shower time, cooking healthy food time, and gym time. I am overweight (well, obese technically) and was doing so good with cooking/eating healthy and exercising before baby. I’ve been attempting gym but it means super early wake up, pump, gym, take over baby duty so husband can go to work, maybe eat breakfast, pump, etc. Exercise does wonders for my anxiety. I also desperately want to get healthier to be active for this baby, and healthier for my next pregnancy. 
-easier travel. We go out of town 1-2 weekends/month, and spend an evening at my parents’ once a week, spend time with friends frequently. I work 2 days/week. That’s a lot of equipment to haul, and to clean on the go or being home dirty. And then to make sure milk stays at right temp, and you’ve brought enough with you if baby is there too. 
CONS:
-the guilt. Oh the guilt. If I CAN make milk, shouldn’t I make milk? Shouldn’t I give my baby everything that I can? 
-upcoming cold/flu season—breastmilk to give more protection? 
-reported “decreased risk of obesity and diabetes” with breast milk vs formula. This one heavily ties into guilt, my lifelong overweight status, and wanting the very best for my son. 
-possible gas/allergy reaction 
PLEASE give me your opinions and experiences, leaning whichever way. I want to make an informed decision. 
Fortunately for us, the cost of formula isn’t a huge con for us. If you formula feed, what type? I’ve read that there are good goat-milk based ones? 
Is it possible to pump 1x/day to give him something? I have a large storage capacity and rarely feel too engorged.

Answer

if you feel you need your sanity and pumping is just too much, switch. dont make it difficult. personally, if it were me, I'd keep pumping. what's 6 more months, you've gone this far. you do what is best for you.

Answer

I exclusively pumped for 8 weeks. It made me so depressed. I switched to formula and me and baby are much better!

Answer

I was trying to pump only and it just did not work for me.  I would do formula.  It was so nice to be able to sleep again.  I've also read a study that said with pumping only you are actually introducing more bacteria because of pump parts, pumping bottles etc.

Answer

Do what you have to do, go with your gut. You do not need to explain or justify why you want to switch to formula. 
The important thing is that your baby is fed. You also have to remember a healthy momma is so necessary for healthy baby.

Answer

I have been exclusively pumping and am slowly stopping - my son is just shy of 6months. EPing is ROUGH and for my sanity purposes I needed to switch to formula. I still pump when I wake up and before I go to bed, but soon it will just be in the morning. I’m happier, my baby is still being fed, best of both worlds. He got only breast milk for the first 5+ months of his life and now gets 1-2 bottles of it a day depending on what I pump. It’s what works for us. Do what works for YOU! Don’t feel guilty, fed is best girl!

Answer

You can't make a wrong choice, whatever you do is what is best for you and your son. You are the best mom for your baby. I also want to say there is a lot of room between exclusively pumping and exclusively formula feeding. If you can pump once or twice and give one or two bottles of breastmilk and the rest formula you still get a ton of the benefits you mentioned in your list. It may ease your decision to not think of it as an all or nothing decision.

Answer

It is 100% YOUR choice. No matter what anyone else thinks or says you know what's best for you and your baby. If you feel like you will be a better mom stopping then stop. He needs a mom more than breast milk. If you think the the cons of stopping outweigh the pros than keep going. 
I understand the situation my baby never latched I went to 3 different lactation consultants and nothing worked. I tried exclusively pumping I barely lasted a week. I have bad anxiety and I felt myself becoming more and more depressed. It was so hard and I made the decision to stop and become a better mom to my daughter and she is thriving on FORMULA! The dreaded F word. 
But that's MY story I did what was best for myself and my child. And I'm sure other people thought I could just get over it and stick it out but I knew for my mental health and for me to be the mom my daughter deserved I needed to stop. 
You know in your gut what is right. He got 6 whole months of breast milk that's amazing be proud of yourself and make the best decision for you your baby and your life. I hope I helped even a little ! 
Good luck ! ♥️

Answer

I am down to pumping once before bed and I'm planning to be 100% finished by September. I have started working out again because of the extra time I have for myself that I otherwise would spend pumping. I can also focus a bit more on cooking and eating healthy. I will say though with the extra calories burned during breastfeeding I've put back on a few pounds so I'm going to have to focus on diet a bit more. But it feels great to be done and my body feels more like my body again 😊

Answer

I started combo feeding my daughter a few months ago due to a medical issue and the guilt is real. But also- the relief is real. It’s made going out during the day easier. It’s lightened the feeding load so other people can give her a bottle besides me. But we also breastfeed first thing in the morning when my supply is highest and I do love that time with her. 
We use Holle goat milk formula and I. Love. It. It’s very close to breast milk in composition- I tasted every formula I gave her before we settled on it and they all were NASTY but this one tastes good to me. I think the worry with obesity and diabetes is the composition of most US based formulas being corn syrup which spikes their blood sugar. Hipp and Holle formulas don’t have corn syrups so that’s less likely. 
Do what’s best for you and your babe, mama! You’re the perfect mama for your baby. ❤️

Should I switch to formula?

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