A mother from Bolingbrook, Ill. in her mid-twenties required Essure removal by hysterectomy after suffering extreme side effects from the permanent birth control method, according to a recent Chicago Tribune article.

Essure consists of two small non-hormonal coils which are placed inside of the fallopian tubes and encourage scar tissue formation. The scar tissue surrounding the coils is purportedly supposed to block conception within three months.

The occlusion of the fallopian tubes through this process needs be checked by a qualified radiologist that performs a procedure known as a hysterosalpingogram—an X-ray-like diagnostic technique that involves the insertion of a contrast medium into the uterus through the cervix.

According to the Tribune article, the Bolingbrook mother of three children under five-years-old, Dara L., experienced immediate problems after having Essure coils implanted in the fall of 2015 in her doctor’s office.

The implantation procedure takes an average of 26 minutes and appeals to a lot of women because of the convenience factor. By comparison, tubal ligation requires the patient take time off from work, be administered general anesthesia and undergo bilateral incisions.

Dara L. says she discovered she was allergic to the nickel in the coils. By the morning after having the coils put in, she had broken out in pustules from her hips down to the balls of her feet. To end these side effects, Dara L. eventually had to have Essure removal done via complete hysterectomy.

This Essure removal intervention led Dara to join several thousand women in a grass roots movement designed to get the attention of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regarding the dangers of this birth control method.

The movement was coordinated through Facebook groups where women who self-identify as E-sisters—those women united in their negative experiences of this device—share their stories with each other in a public forum.

Erin Brockovich, famous environmental activist, has lent the power of her name to this effort to ensure Essure removal from the marketplace. The Chicago Tribune article indicates that progress on this effort is being made.

According to the report, as of early last month, the FDA now requires that doctors and patients go over a document that clearly details all of the risks associated with the permanent birth control device prior to implantation of the coils. The would-be recipient must sign the document after the review.

Another alleged win for the movement is an announcement recently made by the FDA regarding new safety guidelines established for approving medical devices in the U.S.

The announcement was made just prior to the release of a documentary at the Tribeca Film Festival that features an Essure patient that suffered grave side effects and excruciating pain following her implantation with the product.

This Essure patient, Amanda D. of Orion, Ill., established herself as a leader in the grassroots movement to get Essure removal from the market accomplished. She gathered the data and stories of women that suffered numerous adverse medical events and presented it to the FDA in 2015 and the FDA commissioner this year.