Kelly Ripa's Return To All My Children After Giving Birth Wasn't What She Expected

Anyone who has been following Kelly Ripa over the years knows that she's someone who gets things done. In an interview with The Cut back in 2019, the actor and talk-show host detailed her day-to-day life, including how she stays in shape, preps for her morning show, and stays connected with her husband Mark Consuelos, and their three children. From the outside in, it looks like Ripa is someone who has complete control over her life, her health, and most importantly, her happiness. "I have a great energy level," Ripa told the publication regarding how she stays on top of things. "I don't nap, and I fear that if I did nap it would probably make me stay awake all night."

But it wasn't always like this for the "All My Children" alum when she was on the soap opera. After Ripa gave birth to her first child back in 1997, she wasn't in a rush to get back to her former self so soon after her pregnancy. However, it seemed like some of the stylists at the daytime television show where she worked had different expectations for her and it became obvious when she returned to "All My Children" after her maternity leave. That's not because she couldn't get back into the swing of things with her lines in the fast-paced soap opera environment. Instead, it's because of something that the wardrobe department said about her postpartum weight at the time.

Kelly Ripa is someone who likes to share so many personal details about her life that she often gets called out for her NSFW confessions. She was even named the 'Poster Girl for TMI' when she detailed all the reasons why she enjoys not getting her menstrual periods anymore, as detailed by OK! Magazine. If Ripa has an audience in front of her, you better believe that she will have a story to tell. 

However, not every one of Ripa's stories has ended with the audience laughing. During her "Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa" podcast, Ripa said she took it easy when it came to shedding off her postpartum weight after she gave birth to her son Michael back in 1997. However, the wardrobe department at "All My Children" had different expectations at the time. Ripa claims that she was criticized for not losing her pregnancy weight fast enough even though she returned to work only nine days after giving birth.

The television personality says that the wardrobe department had expected her to bounce back to her former self almost right away, though she wasn't in any rush. She recalled: "The wardrobe people were like, 'We thought you'd be smaller by now.' I was like, 'Well, I'm not going to be smaller anytime soon. I don't know much but here's what I do know. This looks like it's going to be here for a while."

Many women feel the pressure to get back to work after giving birth and Kelly Ripa felt no different. In her "Let's Talk Off Camera with Kelly Ripa" podcast, she added that it wasn't easy for her to get back to the set of the daytime television soap so soon after her pregnancy. "I was on a soap, and I had to go back to work nine days after," she said. "Nine days! It was brutal."

If that weren't enough, Ripa also admitted to not feeling like the best version of herself after she had given birth. Even though her in-laws had moved in with her following the birth of her first child, she still felt like she could have used a network of support. "I think all women who have given birth will tell you that they feel they are on an island," Ripa explained during her podcast.

Ripa has often been very open about her struggles with depression and anxiety. "People think that because I'm an extrovert on television I am one in real life. Surprise. That's why they call it acting," the talk-show host wrote in her book, "Live Wire" (via ET Online). Thankfully, Ripa not only has her husband Mark Consuelos but also all three of her children by her side (as often seen on her Instagram page), so there's no doubt she feels the love the most when she needs it.