Get a high stability greatshield and put some points into stamina and whatever the hell equip load's tied to--endurance? You'll probably need some base strength to wield said shield. You'll be able to block a whole lot of attacks--and I bet wielding that shield with two hands (hold triangle/Y if it's in your left hand) will further increase its stability.
I went with dual Falchions for the entire game--though they're not the fastest, they're still relatively quick vs. heavier strength weapons and take a lot less stamina to use. I find it much safer to use because on some harder bosses (especially the DLC ones, who are among my favorite), the windows you have to attack are, as you said, very short. They can vary, and so having a relatively fast weapon that you can combo a couple times and then back off so you still have stamina to dodge/block safely is something I really appreciated. Sometimes all I'd do is a single R1 strike because of my stamina--or none at all!
The game gets easier as you progress, since the number of estus charges you have (and the amount they heal) increases. Plus, you'll be able to dump extra souls into basic lifegems sold by the old hag, and after a certain boss I've forgotten, she'll have an infinite supply of them.
If you feel ballsy (especially with the Pursuer, because you are far from done with him), bring a tiny shield for parrying. It takes some practice, but there are numerous humanoid enemies whose attacks are telegraphed slowly enough that you can get the parry timing down pretty nicely. (my preferred Pursuer strategy was wait for an attack I can parry, then switch to powerstanced Falchions and do two combos)
Edit: I should also note that the start of the game in Scholar is notably difficult versus the original game, but it gets easier, level design-wise, later on.
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