Defoliation during flowering and overall plant health

defoliation implies removing many leaves at once which (as you mentioned) is stressful. At this point I wouldn't remove any leaves especially because your leaves aren't hiding any nugs underneath them. If you still want to remove leaves I would remove 2 at one time and wait for the plant recover before removing any more,that way you won't be causing too much stress. Also, prioritise the leaves that look unhealthy (which you dont seem to have at this point)