What are the early symptoms of HIV in women?

Many women do not show any symptoms immediately after being infected with HIV, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health. Some women may have a flu-like illness, including headache, tiredness, fever and enlarged lymph nodes, within the first two months after being exposed to HIV.

Early symptoms of HIV in women are mild and may disappear unnoticed. The early symptoms may be dismissed even though the virus is active in the body and can be passed to other people, as explained by Healthline. Severe symptoms may appear several years later when the body immune worsens, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.