Hi Jaylynne,
I was able to suppress my gender issues pretty well when I had to. They would always come back, of course, but there were times when I just wasn't able to express them in any way. I don't know if it was healthy, but I felt it necessary at times.
For me (YMMV), my gender issues were only part of who I am. Your gender affects almost every aspect of your life, but there are times when I felt I had to work on other facets and force my GID to stew in the background, so to speak.
Take care of what you need to take care of now. You can take care of the other stuff later. This is a long and bumpy road. Don't worry about taking a rest or small detour now and then.
- Kate