Aim: To compare different levels of self-rated average nausea intensity with early physical recovery and determine if nausea can reflect recovery in patients undergoing general or orthopaedic surgery.

Background: Nausea has been found to influence postoperative physical recovery. Despite the incidence of nausea in postoperative care, there is a knowledge gap about the possibility of using average nausea intensity to reflect recovery, motivating further investigation.

Design: An observational design with repeated measures.

Methods: General and orthopaedic patients answered a questionnaire (October 2012–January 2015) about nausea and impact on recovery on postoperative days 1 (N = 479) and 2 (N = 441). Questions about average nausea intensity at rest and during activity were answered based on the Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) (0–10). Impact on recovery was evaluated using three dimensions from the postoperative recovery profile tool.

Results: About one-fifth of the patients reported nausea intensity as moderate to severe on days 1 and 2. Nausea intensity was associated with eight of nine aspects of recovery on postoperative day 1. Nausea intensity on day 1 also reflected four of nine aspects of recovery on day 2. About reflecting physical recovery, the association was strongest between nausea intensity and appetite changes.

Conclusions: As postoperative nausea is common, regular assessments by healthcare professionals are needed. Assessment of nausea is of importance since it reflects physical recovery. This also shows the importance of treating nausea without delay. Using the NRS to measure nausea intensity is a simple method that is easy to use in clinic.