MIL is a hoarder. Any advice?

My husbands mom is a hoarder. It was two years before my husband gave me a tour of her house because he was embarassed. She has a full basement that is filled to the ceiling with junk. There is a path to the washing machine from the stairs and that is it. The main level isvery cluttered but somewhat manageable. The kitchen table has junk on it, the counters have junk on it and the stove has junk on it. The living room has magazines and junk covering up the fireplace. Laundry is piled up in the chairs. Her bedroom has a path to the bed from the door. The upstairs is filled to the brim. Before we let Julain stay all night there, we cleaned out a bedroom that is right across from her room. This bedroom is only 7ft by 7ft. That is enough for a toddler. Well, it took us 3 days to clear the junk, remove the rat poop and move junk out. She did not want to throw anything away, she wanted us to move it to the basement or upstairs. The room was clean and all of Tootsie's toys were in there along with a daybed. We thought that if we used Julian as an excuse then she would keep that room spotless. That is her only granddaughter and you would think that she would want to keep her safe. Three days later, a shoe box with papers ended up in there. She said she was going to go through those papers. Then a pile of clothes landed on the bed, she said she was going to sort those. She will not let hubby throw away magazines from 1973 because she said there are recipes in them she wantes to keep. I cannot allow JUlian to stay there over night. It is not safe. If you mention it the mess to her she will cry and Dh hates to make his mom cry. She has a two car garage filled with junk. Hubby even took out dump truck over there and parked it in the front of the house so that she could throw stuff in it. It did not work. Any advice?

Hoarders have an illness (no disrespect) and need professional help: http://www.aetv.com/hoarders/

I know hers is emotional and that is why it is so hard to bring it up so that she can get help. She would have such a better life if she got rid of most of that stuff. She buys things and leaves it in the bag. Food, clothes, shoes or whatever. I feel bad for her because she deserves better.

Have you tried to get her to watch the AETV show? There has also been an episode on Oprah. Sometimes, the information coming from a non relative or friend is easier to get through.

If she isn't ready to make a change I don't know that there is a way to help her. Trying to help people who won't admit that there is a problem/aren't ready to make a change will only make a bad situation worse.

It is an illness and she needs professional help when she is ready. If you let her know lovingly that unfortunately her granddaughter can not come over due to safety/health concerns, that just might help her reach out for help. Good luck.