Question:
A person who suffers from OCD and constantly imagines that he did not say “mashiv haruach” etc. or has doubts, what should he do? May he take a bookmark and put it in a certain place in his siddur as soon as he says those words, and that way if he has a doubt later if he said it or not, he will look at the bookmark and be able to tell? May he rely on this and if the bookmark is in the right place, assume that he said it, and vice versa? Is this a hefsek during S”E, when one is not supposed to do anything else, or to hold anything in his hand other than a siddur?
Answer:
The halacha is that if a person already finished the second bracha and has forgotten to say, or has doubts if he said “Morid Hagashem”, that he has to say Shemona Esrei again. This halacha only applies to the first 30 days (or 90 tefilos, which even is less) from when they started saying it, after that we assume that he got used to saying it and that he indeed did say it. Alternatively he can practice saying it, (in a way that he won’t say Hashem’s name, such as saying ” mechayeh meisim ato rav l’ hoshiah, maashiv haruach u’morid hagashem” 90 times, and then it is considered as if he already passed the 30 days. I know of people that made a song out of these words and they sing in on Shmeini Atzeres, to insure that they won’t have such an issue.
You may also put a bookmark into your siddur to help you remember to say it ,and you can rely on this. You also do not have to be worried that it is a hefsek in middle of Shemona Esrei because it is being done it order to help you concentrate, no different than picking up the siddur that fell while you are davening. this is going to help you concentrate for the rest of the davening, that you won’t be bothered by the Yetzer Hora trying to disturb your concentration.
Another important point to remember; if he said “Morid Hatal” instead of “morid hageshem” he does not have to go back
Sources:
O”H 114 5,6,9, M”B ibid 41, 42, M”B 96-7
