'General Hospital' star is 'taking a break' after 20 years on the soap opera

Kirsten Storms is checking out of “General Hospital”—for now.

Storms announced in an Instagram video Monday that she will be “taking a break” from the long running soap opera.

“I really want to thank 'GH,' the ABC network executives, the writers for agreeing to let me take this time,” she said in the video. “I know Frank [Valentini, executive producer] and the producers there know my reasons, and I am so grateful that they understand and are supportive.”

Storms didn’t give specifics about her reasons for temporarily leaving the show, but she did explain she’ll be moving o Tennessee with her 11-year-old daughter Harper, who she shares with her ex, Brandon Barash.

“It’s always been a dream of mine to move to a place like this, it’s hard to believe it’s really happening,” she wrote in the caption.

And the 41-year-old made it clear she’s not saying goodbye to Port Charles forever.

“When you approach a job like this, they can always be like, ‘Forget it. We'll let you out of your contract if you're gonna leave the state,’” Storms said. “‘GH’ did not do that, which was kind of amazing, because I also asked for some time off.”

The former Disney Channel star joined “General Hospital” in 2005 in the role of Maxie Jones and earned a Daytime Emmy nomination in 2009 for her performance.

Storms has completed filming for the year, but assured fans there are some surprises in store for her character.

“I promise you the storyline they have going on until my return to Port Charles is kind of [incredible],” she shared. “You guys are gonna freak out, actually. Can't wait to see the comments online about that.”