I get really angry when I'm told to ignore the people calling me ugly or too thin. How can I? I'm only eighteen
The singer, 18, said: "It's a miracle I'm still alive I've been driven to hell and back.
Cher who was relentlessly attacked on Twitter, Facebook and YouTube is now campaigning against web bullying to help others suffering from trolls' sick, anonymous jibes.
The teenager, from Malvern, Worcs a finalist on the 2010 talent series said: "The worst thing I've suffered was when I received a death threat against my mum.
"It was her birthday and she was destroyed. She was a total wreck. I was so angry say what you want about me, but don't upset her."
She added: "I think these people need help. To do that to someone, there's got to be something wrong with you.
"It sounds strange but I feel sorry for them.
"Maybe they've got a troublesome life, to feel the need to pick into other people's."
Pain ... Cher Lloyd on 2010's X Factor
Rex FeaturesCher spoke out as a new survey by Beat Bullying, to be published on Monday, reveals that one in 13 young people face persistent online bullying.
As The Sun has exposed in our Target A Troll campaign, a new breed of internet bully is stalking social networking sites.
They aim their heartless attacks at victims ranging from TV celebrities to grieving teens.
The cowards also strike on tribute websites which have been set up in memory of lost loved ones.
Targets for abuse have included Amy Winehouse, Jade Goody, Sara Payne and murdered teenagers Sally Anne Bowman and Jimmy Mizen.
Abuse ... Jesy Nelson from Little Mix
Ken McKay / Rex FeaturesCher said: "When I was on The X Factor, because of my insecurities, I put on a front ! and I wa s this big, hard, cocky wannabe.
"But I'm nothing like that in real life.
"I'm quite scared of what people say about me or do to me."
After a breathtakingly confident first audition, the then 16-year-old became a celebrity overnight.
Initially there was an online outpouring of love.
Cher read the messages that poured in on sites such as Facebook in awe and amazement.
She said: "When I started reading all the comments, people saying how amazing I was, that was really refreshing for someone to have confidence in me, for the nation to be like, 'She's amazing'."
But it wasn't long before the tide started to turn.
Cher explained: "I remember the first time there were a couple of really bad comments.
"People might think, 'Oh, just get over it they're only talking about your face or your eyebrows or your teeth'.
"But they picked up on everything I was insecure about.
"People started picking on me and hammering into me.
"They were saying, 'You're not pretty,' 'You're really ugly'' 'Why are you doing it?'.
"That's when it started to really to hurt. Right from the very start.
"I decided to delete my Facebook account. It drove me insane.
"Those messages ruined everything else all the good uses of Facebook to connect with your friends and so on.
"It really frustrates me when people say, 'Just ignore it'.
"How am I meant to ignore it? I'm a teenage girl.
"I'm going to be drawn to that comment more than I am to one saying I'm beautiful or a great singer. Just like every other teenage girl would be. I put on a complete guard in front of me after that.
"I didn't want to talk to anyone, I wanted people to leave me alone. I put on this hard person.
"And it meant I came across so badly. I'm gutted about it.
"But I didn't know how to express the way I was! feeling in the right way."
Cher, who recently got engaged to boyfriend Craig Monk, has contributed to a BBC1 Panorama programme called Hunting The Online Bullies.
It will be broadcast on Monday night at 8.30pm.
The singer has had long and bitter experience of bullying in all its vicious forms having been taunted in the playground about her gypsy roots.
But she thinks being at the brunt of cyber abuse is tougher than being bullied in person.
She said: "I think it's worse to be bullied online than in person.
"You can't see them and you think, 'They're getting a kick out of this and I'm sat here crying'.
Targeted ... Jade Goody
"So what, they've won? And there's nobody that's going to do anything about it.
"You can't ring someone up and ask them to remove this person from Twitter because they're verbally abusing me.
"The worst thing about all of it is I was too proud to speak out about it.
"But I fear it's happening everywhere.
"It really hurts me to think there are people out there going through it and haven't told anyone. For any human being, if you let things build up like that, something really bad will happen.
"It already has. It's gone way too far.
"I started thinking silly things like, 'Am I way too thin?', 'Am I really ugly?', 'Am I not a star?'. I started over-thinking everything.
"I was just a mess. How was I supposed to know what 'Perfect' was?"
And even though she is now a fully fledged, mega-selling star whose debut album Sticks + Stones is about to go platinum from UK sales alone, criticism still hurts. The young singer confided: "I still get so frightened about what people are going to think about me.
"It's a constant worry for me. I'm frightened all the time.
"But I'm not afraid to admit that any more.
"I'm sick of crying, sitting in the d! ark wish ing someone would come and help me.
"I just want to learn to enjoy myself now and not take anything for granted." She has also learned that whatever words are said, she survived and became stronger.And that is exactly the advice she offered to Little Mix's Jesy Nelson, who experienced similar abuse while on the way to victory in last year's series of The X Factor.
Cher said: "I went to a party and noticed that Little Mix were there, but Jesy wasn't.
"So I called her up and she said, 'I just don't feel good about myself'.
"And that's down to cyber bullying.
"That made this girl not go out and see all the crazy stuff that she could be doing, because of comments. She missed a great night. She's such a bubbly girl the type of girl I wanted to be friends with at school.
"So it was so hurtful to see her so down when she had this massive opportunity just beginning to open up in front of her.
"After going through the highs of the audition process, she was brought down to the bottom again because of someone being nasty about her.
"I wish someone would've told me the same that it'll be all right, you'll be OK."
Jailed ... troll Sean Duffy abused dead teens
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