agree with you totally dollyroux...i had battles getting DD off to sleep just now, it has taken over an hour of her crying/screaming and finally she has gone to sleep. I tried everything and nothing would work until she had finally exhausted herself and I had done a hundred trips up and down the hallway with the pram...does this mean I am a crap parent because I let my daughter cry herself to sleep?
She usually cries as she goes to bed anyway, it might not be a full on distressed cry, but still a cry/whinge. i try and settle but for the most part it is easier if I just let her go and just stay in the room, as me touching her/patting her/talking only wakes her up even more, whereas just my presence is often enough to make her realise I'm not going anywhere.

Like everything to do with parenting there are a hundred and one ways to do anything, I don't think parents who use CC/CIO should be "labelled" as terrible parents, sometimes it's simply the last resort. I don't agree with CIO but have used a form of CC, and yeah i will admit sometimes I do wish I could just walk out of the room and let her cry because nothing else seems to work...

I dont believe my daughter is 'damaged' in any way, it's just that sometimes as a parent I choose to CC because that what seems to work for us.