I think, when talking about this, you have to realise it's of the time and the context in which she grew up and the world she moved in. She could've been jailed - realistically - if it had been discovered that she was gay back then. These articles talk about it in a bit more detail -
So yeah it was a big deal to her, as she could've lost her career (she had wanted to go into the army since she was 14 or so) and lost her freedom and basically been completely disgraced. Being surrounded by that kind of pressure to hide who you are for that length of time isn't something trivial. It's sad she had to go through it especially when serving her country and I'm glad that times have changed.