![lady macbeth sleepwalking lady macbeth sleepwalking](https://imgc.artprintimages.com/img/print/lady-macbeth-sleepwalking-c-1783_u-l-p3al7m0.jpg)
The doctor notes this while observing Lady Macbeth's behaviour. Yet I have known those which have walked in their sleep who have died holily in their beds." (5.1.59-61) Lady Macbeth also appears to have depression - this is later proved by her suicide but specifically in this passage, she begins to cry when she states the smell of blood will never leave her hands. Her guilt has caused her to hallucinate blood that remains on her hands and the Gentlewoman later comments that "I have known her to continue in this a quarter of an hour". She appears to have OCD due to her obsessive behaviour about washing her hands. Lady Macbeth appears to suffer from both mental illnesses - obsessive compulsory disorder (OCD) and depression. According to a study done by Stanford University of Medicine, people suffering from obsessive compulsory disorder and depression are more likely to sleep walk compared to those that do not. Although the exact cause of sleepwalking is still unknown, in Macbeth, one can assume Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking is brought on by her immense guilt over her involvement in the deaths of Duncan and Banquo. Sleepwalking is characterized as arousal from non-REM sleep. Firstly, she sleepwalks which can be considered a mental illness in itself.
![lady macbeth sleepwalking lady macbeth sleepwalking](https://rlv.zcache.com/lady_macbeth_sleepwalking_1783_oil_on_canvas_poster-rd9fa68964fc14bab8ca6efd75828dadc_wve_8byvr_540.jpg)
Lady Macbeth displays many common mental illnesses within her scene in 5.1. Lady Macbeth sleepwalks while holding a candle and obsessing over blood which she hallucinates on her hands.
![lady macbeth sleepwalking lady macbeth sleepwalking](https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-feud0ek893/images/stencil/1024x1024/products/5151/15264/20262_source_1567000332__45479.1567387074.jpg)
This passage, spoken by the Gentlewoman, refers to Lady Macbeth's sleepwalking in Act 5. "I have seen her rise from her bed, throw her nightgown upon her, unlock her closet, take forth paper, fold it, write upon't, read it, afterwards seal it, and again, return to bed yet all this while in a most fast sleep" (5.1.4-8)