I have severe pain in my lower abdomen that comes and goes, loose stools, and crampiness.?

Time to see doctor?: Stool texture (regardless of volume or frequency of movements) is defined by the bristol stool scale (bss), which ranges from 1 (hard, pellet stool) to 7 (loose, watery stool). Normal stool grades a 4 on the bss. On the other hand, "diarrhea" is defined by volume & stool frequency (typically more than 4-5 bowel movements/day). Maybe ibs, but see doc if bleeding, fever, tenderness, & recurrent sxs.