Em Rusciano: How I fixed my marriage

At 39, Em Rusciano is already the mother of two gorgeous girls—Marchella, who is 16, and Odette, 11—to partner of 18 years, Scott Barrow. But the Aussie comedian shows no sign of slowing down, having recently announced she’s about to be a mum once more— this time around, a boy.

Chatting exclusively to WHO, Em opens up about her family life, including her secret to a successful marriage.

You and Scott have been together a long time.

That’s right, 18 years. We have had two separations—don’t forget that! The first one was 2010, and then again in 2012. We have managed to keep it together though.

You’re obviously a pretty resilient couple?

Yes. Resilient, stubborn! We just went through what a lot of marriages go through, you go through 10 years of hell, and if you can get out the other side with decent respect for one another, then it’s smooth sailing. We had been together for six or seven years, and it started getting really hard at that seven-year mark. Then we hit that bit where a lot of people would just have got divorced.

Did it upset you earlier this year when there were headlines about you being difficult to work with – following a candid conversation you had with Wil Anderson on his podcast ‘Wilosophy’?

Yeah. I remember walking away from doing that podcast with Wil feeling so good. And I remember feeling like I was really seen by him. And all I did, again, was tell the truth. What annoyed me was that whole narrative around, ‘Oh, she’s difficult. She’s a bitch.’ Because I am not. I’m just flat out not—and anyone who works closely with me knows that. But I am fiercely protective of who I am. And I know exactly what I want. If someone gets in my way, and threatens myself, or my livelihood, or my family, I will strongly come up against them.

And now you’re ready for this next chapter.

Now I am financially stable. I’m an adult, and I have friends with babies and kids. I can really relax into this pregnancy and enjoy it. I don’t feel panicked all the time. I remember when I was 21 and pregnant, I was in a perpetual state of panic. I had no-one.

This article originally appeared on WHO.