Vanessa Morgan Shares the 'Good Advice' She Received from Kelly Ripa After Son River's Birth
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Broadimage/Shutterstock Vanessa Morgan
Vanessa Morgan can count on her Riverdale family.
Morgan, 29, who plays Toni Topaz on the CW hit, tells PEOPLE that her costars stepped up to help her out when she gave birth to her first child River, who is now 9 months old. Morgan welcomed her son in January with her estranged husband, Michael Kopech.
The actress says her costars have been eager to support her as a new mom, including former costar Mark Consuelos and his wife, Kelly Ripa.
"I talked to Kelly after I gave birth," says Morgan, who is partnering with Oral B to promote their new iO brush. "Mark, they were just excited for me, and gave me beautiful, beautiful baby clothes for River."
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Morgan also shares that after she gave birth to River via cesarean section, Ripa was a great resource to talk to.
"Kelly, she's also had one and gave me some good advice for healing, and using silicone bandages, and that's what I use," Morgan says. "And she just told me, 'Yeah, up to a year you might still feel pain,' and all this stuff. So it was nice talking to somebody else who's been through it. She has given me some good advice of healing in that way."
Morgan says that when she first gave birth to River, "it was really nice" to have her Riverdale family come by and meet her son for the very first time.
"They were just like, 'Oh my God, you're a mom. This is River.' Because he's been in my stomach when we were filming and working," she explains of her castmates, including Madelaine Petsch, K.J. Apa, Lili Reinhart, Camila Mendes and Cole Sprouse.
Vanessa Morgan/ instagram
While it was an adjustment for everyone to meet River, Morgan also says the experience has been "special" because she's been lucky enough to share it with her Riverdale colleagues.
"It took them a while to comprehend this is your baby. It's weird," she recalls. "But it's just been so special being able to share motherhood with them and they've been so supportive. River has this whole family, uncles and aunts of people on my show, and it's so nice. Everybody loves him. He has his own trailer at work."
Morgan says her son will soon be turning 1 and so she's trying to make more time for self-care, telling PEOPLE, "I'm doing the best I can."
And when it comes to me time, the actress said that she's lucky to "at least" have time for brushing her teeth, explaining that she was excited to partner with Oral B because she's been using their products since high school.
"I was super excited about it. It's the coolest toothbrush I've ever used," she says of the brand's iO brush.
Morgan adds, "I find doing the little things for me. I'm trying, now that he's 9 months old, to do little things, to do a face mask at night after he goes to bed, and waking up in the morning and getting ready and doing those little things.
"It's definitely starting to make a difference in my mood, and feeling like I'm still a person regardless. I'm River's mom first, but I'm still me," she says. "I can still do my fun little self-care routines. I think that doesn't help me forget that it's so important, but I'm now getting back into it."
