Early labor?

I keep having cramps. Little painful but not unbearable and my lower back hurts also. I am uncomfortable and I keep feeling like I’m going to poop this dang kid out. I really don’t know what a true contraction feels like so I can’t tell when my stomach goes hard if it is one or just a Braxton hicks. I didn’t know the difference when I was in labor with my first son either. I thought it was Braxton Hicks til my nurse told me it was actual contractions. Can’t someone please help explain this to me.