Just thought I’d put it out there because I feel like it would be neglectful of me not to: minoxidil fucked my skin and aged me by a good 5-10 years. And I was only using it topically on my scalp for balding! The effects on my face would have been from the residue on my pillow as I roll around in my sleep. I can’t imagine what would have happened to me if I put it on my face. Look up “minoxidil collagen breakdown” for more details; I’ll spare you them here, but taking minoxidil for 1.5 years is one of my biggest regrets.
There is very little data on the likelihood that this impacts someone taking it, mostly bc the hair restoration industry is extremely quick to silence anyone who complains of any kind of side effect. I was even told by the Dr who prescribed it to me that I was “imagining things.”
Whether you heed this caution or not, I wish you the best in your journey to glorious beardom.
I am not a trans woman but I was hoping I could chip in with a bit about Finasteride as I used to be on it.
Finasteride is not a general anti androgen, but it does block DHT, which is what some T gets converted to and is the most potent/effective form of T. I’m a guy and I was briefly on it for hair loss but I stopped because it made me depressed (dysphoria) and I also felt a little weaker. So at least from my experience, I would call it an anti-androgen, even if it works specifically against DHT.
One side effect of finasteride reported by some men taking it is breast development, so I would be very surprised if it has anything to do with what you are noticing with your chest.
Have you had a blood test recently? If that’s all good, breast growth can take a long time (several years), and ofc the full extent of it varies from person to person.