help! dead w124 tranny!!!

Alright, so I was just driving around in my 1988 300e and without warning my transmission started acting up. It feels like it is always starting in first gear even though I'm not hitting the kickdown switch. It also won't shift to the next gear (second?) until very late (about 3500 rpm).

I was able to nurse the car home and check a few things:
Fluid level is normal, smells and looks normal. After removing the kickdown switch completely the problem persists.

So after using the SEARCH function, I read that other people have solved the exact problem by a fluid/filter change. The only thing that I am concerned about is that I had the system flushed last summer (although I don't know if the filter was changed). Is my tranny trying to tell me something? I guess the best idea now is to get the flush and see if the problem is fixed, but does anybody have any other advice on what might be going wrong?

Thank you all very much for your time and expertise.

Peter
1988 300e
1988 420sel