General Hospital actress Kirsten Storms has been written out of the long-running daytime soap after what has been described as a “mental health crisis.”
Storms, 42, has played the manipulative and often troublesome Maxie Jones for 21 years, but fans learned the character is moving to Australia on Thursday’s episode of the daytime drama, as reported by Page Six.
Storms told fans last summer that she planned to step away from the ABC soap for six months while she underwent brain surgery. She later moved to Nashville, Tennessee, with her 12-year-old daughter, Harper Rose, whom she shares with her ex-husband, fellow soap star Brandon Barash.
Her extended absence from General Hospital was addressed on-screen by placing her character in a lengthy coma storyline.
Storms returned to General Hospital in February, but appeared in only a limited number of episodes as she continued navigating a legal dispute with Barash involving a restraining order and custody matters.
The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for both Storms and General Hospital seeking comment, but has not yet received a response.
General Hospital actress Kirsten Storms has been written out of the soap following what has been described as a “mental health crisis”
Storms, 42, has portrayed the scheming and frequently chaotic Maxie Jones for 21 years, but viewers learned in Thursday’s episode that the character is relocating to Australia
Last month, Storms revealed she would be taking additional time away from the show to focus on legal matters involving her former husband, Barash.
The couple were married in 2013 after working together on General Hospital, but announced they were divorcing in 2016.
‘Given what’s been going on, I can’t say I will feel comfortable heading back to Los Angeles and returning to work. This has been an eye opening experience about the downside of my profession,’ Storms shared in a June 7 Instagram post.
Her abrupt exit from the long-running soap opera comes after Barash was granted an emergency restraining order against his ex-wife in April.
Barash revealed in court documents that she was struggling with a ‘mental health crisis,’ according to Page Six.
He cited concerns about her housing and financial instability and potential substance abuse that allegedly impaired her ability to safely parent their daughter.
He claimed Storms was sued for eviction in Nashville after the exes relocated there separately to co-parent their daughter.
Barash said ‘instability with housing has been a recurring theme’ for his ex-wife.
The abrupt exit comes after Storms’ character awakened from a prolonged coma in February
Storms’ ex-husband and fellow soap star Brandon Barash was granted an emergency restraining order against her in April
Barash – pictured with Storms and their daughter Harper Rose in 2014 – revealed in court documents that Storms was struggling with a ‘mental health crisis’ and cited concerns about her housing and financial instability and potential substance abuse that allegedly impaired her ability to safely parent their daughter, now 12
Barash asked the court to require Storms to undergo a mental health evaluation; Storms pictured with daughter Harper Rose on Instagram
He asserted Storms didn’t have a permanent residence from September 2024 to June 2025 and often stayed with friends or lived out of hotels, where she would routinely change rooms because she feared people were ‘following her and the child to her room.’
On top of everything, her car was in danger of being repossessed, so he loaned her $5,000 to take care of the issue, her ex alleged in court documents, according to the outlet.
In May 2025, Barash said Storms started ‘experiencing delusions and hallucinations,’ and told him she ‘didn’t think she should have the child for her parenting time.’
That month, she was taken to a hospital, where she was placed on psychiatric hold and later released.
Barash claimed in court documents that a friend of Storms had stated they believed the actress was abusing Adderall.
The Days of Our Lives star asked the court to require Storms to undergo a mental health evaluation.
Storms responded to her ex’s allegations in a July 19 statement posted on her Instagram account.
‘I will briefly acknowledge that there is an ongoing situation with Brandon that will be getting sorted out (soon hopefully),’ she noted.
‘I will briefly acknowledge that there is an ongoing situation with Brandon that will be getting sorted out (soon hopefully),’ Storms said in a July 19 statement via Instagram
‘I would appreciate (and encourage) for people on here not to worry about me, or think there is something larger going on, other than 2 ex-spouses dealing with a “disagreement,” that WILL be resolved.’
She added: ‘Please remember that we are people who are divorced and have a child. I appreciate the supportive comments, but now that my daughter is of the age where she will Google her name while riding the bus to school, I’m asking that the speculation on this issue please stop.’
As for Maxie Jones on General Hospital, she is saying goodbye to Port Charles and moving to Australia with Damien Spinelli (Bradford Anderson) and their children, Georgie, Bailey and James, after Spinelli accepted a job offer.
Fans on Facebook had mixed reactions, with one writing: ‘Even if they don’t recast Maxie, they could write her off in a way that James would understand. Then focus on James and Spinelli and how they deal with the loss together, something many children deal with in real life.’
Another shared: ‘I’m sad that Maxie/Kirsten was written off and I think Spinelli/Bradford may come back,’ while a third argued: ‘Keep Kiersten. Don’t penalize her just because of a nasty divorce [sic].’
