Rob Kardashian Reveals Why He Sympathizes with Caitlyn Jenner - People Magazine

By Aili Nahas and Brittany King

09/01/2016 AT 04:15 PM EDT

Rob Kardashian finally speaks! In a wide-ranging interview in the new issue of PEOPLE, on stands Friday, the reclusive reality star and his expectant fiancée, Blac Chyna, open up about their impending arrival, repairing relations with his famous sisters and dealing with his 100-lb. weight gain. Subscribe now for the exclusive interview, only in PEOPLE!

Rob Kardashian is opening up about how the changes he's seen in his own life this past year have given him more empathy toward Caitlyn Jenner.

As he readies to tell the world his "real" story on his upcoming E! reality series Rob & Chyna, Kardashian is exclusively telling PEOPLE in this week's cover story why he retreated from the spotlight for nearly two years – and how that experience deepened his understanding of his former stepfather's journey of transitioning from male to female.

"I know how it can be to feel uncomfortable in your own skin," admits Kardashian, 29.

"Everybody has their own issues," he notes. "As long as Caitlyn is happy, I'm happy."

And just as Jenner, 66, has been on her own path toward living more honestly and authentically, Kardashian has also made a vow to enact positive changes in his life. By eating right, exercising regularly and beginning to shed some of the 100 lbs. he gained at his lowest point, he steadily regained confidence and even found love with fiancée Blac Chyna.

RELATED VIDEO: Rob Kardashian and Blac Chyna Can't Wait for You to See 'The Real Us'

Kardashian says he hopes for the same happiness for two more members of his family who are in the midst of facing life-changing turning points: Lamar Odom who emerged from a near-fatal overdose last October, and Scott Disick, who has fought (and sometimes failed) to maintain his sobriety both before and after his public split from Kardashian's sister Kourtney in July 2015.

Rob tells PEOPLE: "All I want is for Lamar to be healthy and have a positive life and be there for his kids. Even Scott. In our day and age, all this stuff is very normal."

• For more from Rob Kardashian on his painful past – and bright future with Blac Chyna, pick up this week's issue of PEOPLE, on newsstands Friday

And though Kardashian is the first to acknowledge he missed many milestones in the past two years, he looks forward to putting his famously large family first from now on.

"Now I want to see everybody in my family every chance I get," he says. "You never know what is going to happen tomorrow, and I don't want to do that to my mom [Kris Jenner]."

Keeping Up with the Kardashians has its midseason finale this Sunday at 9 p.m. ET, and Rob & Chyna premieres Sept. 11 at 9 p.m. ET, both on E!