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I have a friend who is weaning off of them now at 5 months. It was difficult, but she really needed them!

We used them for four months....we just quit cold turkey & never had an issue. I think she just needed time for her little mouth to get bigger so she could hang on easier.

We used one for about 6 months before slowly weaning. She continued on to nurse without them until 13 months. The pros for us was like what you said, it was the only thing we knew (the LC didn't even try without one) and it was working for us. My supply never suffered (if anything I had oversupply) and she always seemed to get enough at each feeding. The cons (and ultimately the reason I finally pushed to wean) was having to use them really hurt my BFing confidence. I felt uncomfortable and embarrassed.feeding her away from home. In the end it was almost like I thought I needed them even more than she did. With some encouragement from my Le Leche League leader we would try without one every once in awhile. She would nurse for a few seconds then unlatch so I would put it back on. Finally she nursed a full session without and we never turned back. So if you want to wean your LO off it now go ahead but I don't think there is a time you HAVE to stop. Good luck

Five months. My nipples were inverted by eventually changed shape. He just refused to latch with it on at one point and would latch on while I would set up.

I tried to wean right away and it was so stressful. I'd let yourself get a hang of breastfeeding first.

I stopped after about a week. I was using it on my inverted nipple and it didn't seem to be helping me. However my pain was from m having the nipple drawn out rather than the latch.

We used them for a few weeks. To wean off, I just started trying sessions without it, and if it worked, great, if not, I put it on.

Around 4.5 months, and one day it just clicked and we were able to stop!

I used a shield with my first for 3 years. She refused to nurse without it, even after I had her brother and she saw that he was doing it just fine without a shield she still wouldn't give it up. She was stubborn and still is ;).
I would recommend trying often at the beginning of a feed without it and seeing what happens. Try at times when he's not super hungry. It's so worth going to a good LC to get help weaning off it if you need it. Even with all the help I could find, we were stuck with the dang shield. But I've seen lots of women able to nurse without them after having to use them.
The most common issue you might have with long term shield use is reduced stimulation which translates to lowered/low supply. I was on Domperidone to maintain a reasonable supply when I used the shield. Getting baby to latch deep onto the shield helps to stimulate more than if he just nurses on the tip.
It can be done, and hey, it's okay if you have to use it long term - baby is still getting your milk. You're doing a great job!! It's hard, I remember. *hugs* Feel free to message me if you want I'm a LLL leader-in-training and a long term shield survivor, happy to help!

We're still using them probably 75% of the time now at 3.5 months. We used them all the time until 10ish weeks. I actually went to a LC when he was 2 weeks old to try to get off them and she said that I had a very forceful letdown. She thought that until he got better neck control, it would be hard for him to feed without the shield since he could better control the milk with the shield.

I've never had any supply issues and without them, I wouldn't have been able to breastfeed (he wouldn't latch in the hospital, combination of small mouth and flat nipples). Now, we try to start out without the shield and sometimes he does well and sometimes we end up putting it on.

I'm with you @danizaur: but CJ just won't latch without them. My nipples are too flat and his mouth just doesn't have the right tone yet, although his tongue tie has been corrected and his palate is being corrected by the chiropractor. I wish it were as easy for he and I as it appears to be for other women (and we'll probably move to mixed feeding sooner than we otherwise would have) but as my midwife and chiropractor keep reminding me; feeding with shields still gives baby all the benefits of breastfeeding and is a better option than not breastfeeding at all.