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First sergeant, mother learns meaning of resiliency

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Charles Rivezzo
  • 60th Air Mobility Wing Public Affairs
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  She had just endured perhaps one of the greatest endeavors of her life, returning home after a 10-month deployment to Afghanistan. A single mother of four, Master Sgt. Shalien Edmondson was finally home, but unbeknownst to her, the threat to her life would remain.

While on leave just a few weeks upon her return, Edmondson noticed a discomforting pain coming from her abdomen area and found she wasn't able to catch her breath. After a trip to the emergency room, what doctors found was startling even to trained medical professionals.

"What they found was a giant mass covering the entire left side of my liver, but no one really knew what it was," she said.

Instructed to meet with her primary care manager at David Grant USAF Medical Center, Edmondson went through yet another scan, but like before, no one had a definitive answer. She was admitted to the hospital for nearly a week while doctors conducted a bulk of tests to determine what exactly was going on.

In her typical light-hearted, amusing fashion, Edmondson joked that she would glow when she walked around the hospital. "You name the test, I did it," she laughed.

Eventually, she was diagnosed with having a giant hemangioma resting on top of her liver.

"Just imagine a balloon full of blood sitting on my liver," she said. "At the time, I refused to tell my kids what it was; I didn't want that strain on them. I didn't want them to ever think that they were going to lose their mom ... that wasn't an option."

However, due to the sheer size of the hemangioma, Edmondson's case was sent to the University of Colorado Hospital, where Dr. Richard Schulick, who specializes in surgical oncology and endocrine surgery was comfortable with conducting the surgery.

"I didn't know what was going to come out of it. I questioned if I was going to be the same person," she said.

Shielding her family from the severity of the surgery, Edmondson conveyed her uncertainty and fears with her boyfriend, Matt, who she says stayed by her side throughout the entire process.

Although, Matt wasn't there in person, as he was still serving his tour in Afghanistan as an Air Force pararescuemen. Any time he could find in between missions he would video chat or text with her to ensure she knew he was there.

"He was that person that grounded me and just reassured me that I would come out of it and I would be back to what I was," Edmondson said. "I wasn't telling anyone else how scared I was of what could potentially happen. He was my rock."

After undergoing surgery, the entire left side of Edmondson's liver was resected along with another mass they found on the right side. For the 17-year Air Force veteran, the next three months were arduous as she worked to recover.

"Mentally I was losing it," she said. "I was irked because I couldn't do anything. Since they had to cut open my entire core, I would have a hard time just even standing. I couldn't have done it without the support from my family, friends and co-workers."

Scheduled to attend the Air Force First Sergeant Academy in the spring, Edmondson pushed herself through recovery - coming off her profile early in order to attend the school house.

"It bothered me to be deficient in any area, I needed to make sure I was on the same playing field as every other first sergeant going through the school, that was my motivation," she said. "I don't take myself out of anything it's just not in my nature."

Now serving as the first sergeant for the 21st Airlift Squadron, Edmondson expressed how this experience has forever changed her perspective on things.

"To go on that edge of 'am I losing the job I wanted, am I losing my career, am I going to lose my kids' is something you think about the entire time," she said. "But, in my opinion, to pull through it all and keep your focus is a true sign of what resiliency is.

"Everybody wants to say that resiliency is just something someone else feeds to us, but that's not the case at all. I took it and mentally realized that if I didn't focus on everything that was going to happen then I wouldn't have ever felt that I could actually dig myself back out of that hole."