Early labor symptoms? 38 weeks

Claire • Californian living in Sweden with my Swedish husband 😊
Today has been a struggle. I was awake from 4-6:30am so the rest of the day has not gone so well. 
I had a few loose BM before 10am. Been on the couch exhausted mostly but after my nap I was feeling very flu like- hot flashes, chills, headache, nauseous. Loose BM continued all day long! Been drinking lots of water to keep from getting dehydrated. 
A little after my nap I got an energy boost and cleaned some and then started getting hot and feeling so beside myself. Then started having period like cramps and BH here and there. Starting to have back ache/sharp pains. 
I really hope this mean labor is starting. Anyone go through this themselves? I'm a first time mom and hoping this goes quickly. I can't imagine feeling like this for weeks more.