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It is not the virus (HIV) all by itself that makes the infected person sick, although some persons have passing flu-like symptoms initially. The virus may take a very long time before it has a serious impact on the person's immune system. It is the weakening of the immune system that makes the person sick. A compromised immune system may mean that illnesses like pheumonia or kaposi's sarcoma are more likely to develop. These opportunistic diseases are really what make an infected person sick.
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ViviYes. At the onset, the only symptoms may be flu-like. And an infected individual may or may not present with that. Then a latency period (short or longer) will ensue where "nothing is wrong" and the person feels fine. Later on after treatment (if it was successful), an infected individual who has very low viral load will feel and will appear in every way to be healthy - at least to look at him.
This is simple - HIV infection tends to be asymptomatic for several years. When there are clinical signs of the original infection, they tend to be non-specific (fever, malaise, gastrointestinal upset, upper respiratory or sinus irritation, etc.). These signs are often attributed to the flu or a cold and are often ignored.
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