Background: Psychiatric nurses experience various psychological challenges and problems concerning work stress that they face. The impact can threaten the health and profession of nurses themselves, so they have to adjust the conditions to these problems which are usually referred to as (coping). Purposes: To determine the use of coping strategies used by nurses in dealing with work stress at Yogyakarta Grhasia Mental Hospital. Method: The design of this study used a qualitative phenomenological study of 8 participants based on purposive sampling techniques. The research instrument used semi-structured interviews, field notes, and voice recorders. Results: This study produced 4 themes namely, 1) Seeking support: A place to share problems, problem-solving assistance, 2) Spiritual coping: Getting closer to God, Making a positive meaning, 3) Self-control: Understanding the condition, Controlling emotions, and 4) Diversion problem: Let the problem, Distraction. Conclusion: Nurses at the Mental Hospital use different coping strategies to deal with work stress ranging from problem-focused coping and also emotional focus. But in this study, the informants used more emotion-focused coping.