Hello, Garden Gal!
I have words, but I cannot call them wise for I have long been mired in depression to the point of near-paralysis. What little I manage to "accomplish" usually occurs erratically, enabled by impulses. I have never been able to isolate and distill whatever produces those impulses; I just hope when they appear they'll carry me in some fruitful direction.

Apart from my uncontrolled impulsiveness, I also make some inconsequential headway through micro-steps (they're too small even to be called baby steps). Unfortunately, I have not experienced or achieved what counselors have often said about small steps building momentum leading to larger steps. For me, every "achievement" is barren, and some inner friction prevents all sustained movement.

Perhaps the best advice-from-afar I can offer is to avoid simultaneous primary challenges. You've the work challenge and the academic challenge. Trying to tackle them both at the same time may be a recipe for serious frustration.

All the best to you!