Dr. Sara Acheson is the founder of Athena Wellness & Physical Therapy. She specializes in breast cancer rehabilitation, oncology physical therapy, pelvic floor physical therapy, and orthopedic care for women throughout the lifespan.
Sara earned her Doctorate of Physical Therapy from Emory University in 2015. After completing an orthopedic residency, she became a Board-Certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist in 2017. That same year, she completed an upper extremity lymphedema certification, where she discovered her passion for working with women undergoing treatment for breast cancer.
Wanting to better understand the complex shoulder, upper extremity, and functional changes that can occur during and after cancer treatment, Sara completed an Upper Extremity Athlete Fellowship with a focus on breast cancer recovery in 2019. She has since dedicated much of her career to helping women manage the effects of surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and hormonal therapies, including pain, stiffness, weakness, lymphedema, fatigue, neuropathy, and difficulty returning to exercise and everyday activities.
As she worked more closely with women undergoing cancer treatment, Sara also recognized how frequently pelvic health concerns, sexual health changes, and medically induced menopause affected her patients. This led her to expand her training into pelvic floor physical therapy and comprehensive women’s health care.
Today, Sara works with women across all stages of life, including those navigating pregnancy and postpartum recovery, pelvic floor dysfunction, breast and pelvic cancers, perimenopause and menopause, osteoporosis and osteopenia, joint pain, and orthopedic injuries.
Sara is a strong advocate for the Prospective Surveillance Model of Care in cancer rehabilitation, which emphasizes evaluating patients before or early in cancer treatment and continuing to monitor strength, mobility, function, and quality of life throughout treatment and survivorship.
Outside of the clinic, Sara is a mom of two young children and can usually be found trying to keep up with them and enjoying time with her family.
