I also returned to school late in life. Advanced academia has always required classes not relevent to your degree in order to earn it and it infuriated me to no end, especially the massive amounts of money having to spend on classes that have nothing to do with your chosen degree. Personally I always thought it was a huge racket and don't even get me started on text books and the curriculum covered in a semester. And the real kicker..., I have forgotten almost all of the material I don't use on a fairly regular basis. Venting helps. You will get through it and yes it is really hard, especially in an accelerated program like you are taking. Good luck.