‘Girls’ creator and actor Lena Dunham has spoken out about the effect that negative comments written on the internet about her have had on her personal life, saying that the online world has been the source of “every piece of true pain” she has experienced.

29 year old Dunham announced earlier this month that she had quit Twitter, using somebody to post on her behalf, because it had ceased to become a “safe space” for her. Now, in an interview to go along with her topless photoshoot for the new edition of Harper’s Bazaar, she reveals that she has a love/hate relationship with the internet itself, and has been greatly affected by things she has read about her on various sites.

Lena DunhamLena Dunham has declared her love/hate relationship with the internet

“I’ve been put to bed for weeks from reading things about myself,” Dunham revealed. “I love the internet because it helped me discover everything that matters to me. But I also hate the internet because every piece of true pain I’ve experienced as an adult – with the exception of death in the family and breakups – has come from it.”

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This, and the lack of safety on social media sites she’s cited before, was part of the motivation for creating her website / newsletter ‘Lenny’, in co-operation with ‘Girls’ executive producer Jenni Konner, last month.

“Celebrities can complain all they want about how cruel Twitter is, but we signed up for it. Who didn’t sign up for it are the teenage girls who bully each other to suicide using Twitter,” Dunham explained. “There’s no shortage of stories of how Twitter and Instagram and Facebook, these incredible tools for self-expression, have also led to girls feeling ostracized, alone, slut-shamed. We just want to restore some semblance to safety.”

Earlier this week, Jennifer Lawrence used Dunham’s new site as a platform to speak about her issues with the gender pay gap in Hollywood, and it’s this sort of thing that she wishes to use ‘Lenny’ for, as an internet outlet other than social media.

“I know I'm not most moms' idea of a role model, but I try to use the attention that comes with that wisely and not foolishly,” she says about her influence. “Yes, I will tweet about my issues with underpants, but I also want to say things that matter. I don't want to be out on the town spreading messages I can't get behind. Which is good because I never leave my house.”

More: Lena Dunham reveals she’s stopped using Twitter