Sofia Mattsson bids adieus to General Hospital

Sofia Mattsson is saying goodbye to General Hospital after playing her role as Sasha Gilmore for around seven years.

The final episode of the show was on air July 18 which showed Jason Morgan (Steve Burton) help Gilmore, daughter of Holly Sutton (Emma Samms) and Robert Scorpio (Tristan Rogers) leave the country for the sake of the safety of her baby Daisy.

While her time on the show is ending, she found it surprising that she played the role for a long period of time.

"I started off thinking it would be just a few episodes on recurring status, so I definitely did not think I’d stay so long,” Mattsson shared with TV Insider in an interview published July 18.

“But I will say it’s gone by incredibly quickly. From the start, I’ve seen every day as a challenge and opportunity to grow as an actress, and honestly, that mindset never stopped. I feel like I learned something new every day until the end!"

She also recalled how ‘nervous’ and ‘overwhelmed’ she was when she joined the show years ago.

"I remember being very nervous and overwhelmed, but in a good way,” she continued.

"It definitely took some getting used to the fast pace and heavy material, but I loved the challenge. I also remember really enjoying Sasha’s earlier days of being a bit of a bad girl; that’s always fun to play."

The 34-year-old also shared that it is great to work on a long-running show as it lets new actors to work with and learn from seasoned soap opera stars.

In the case of General Hospital which has been running since 1963, she had Michelle Stafford and Donnell Turner there to guide her at every step.

"Honestly, most people on the show are very helpful to newcomers," she gushed. "I guess everyone remembers how lost you can feel during the early days!"