Missing a Blessing in the Shemoneh Esrei
Question
What does one do if one missed a Bracha in shemona esrei and realized after he finished or skipped a Bracha and remembered he skipped it after the Bracha he just said
Answer
Shalom!
Thank you for your question.
Your question has an exactly parallel discussion in the Talmud: Rav Huna says that when one makes a mistake during a section of the Shemoneh Esrei one returns to the beginning of that section. (Note: Shemoneh Esrei is divided into three section: the first three brachot, the middle thirteen brachot, and the final three brachot). Rav Assi, however, says that the middle brachot have no order. The halacha follows Rav Assi.
One who realizes that he skipped a bracha (blessing) in the Shemoneh Esrei should consider the following procedures.
1. If one began a new bracha, one goes back to the missed bracha as soon as one remembers, recites it, and then continues as normal.
2. If one skipped a bracha anywhere in the first three brachot of the Shemoneh Esrei one returns to the beginning of Shemoneh Esrei and begins anew.
3. If one skipped a bracha anywhere in the last three Berachot one returns to “R’tzei” and continues from there.
4. One who completed the Shemoneh Esrei and realizes one missed a bracha begins the Shemoneh Esrei anew
5. One who skipped words in the middle of a bracha returns to the beginning of that bracha
6. A doubt regarding whether one said/skipped a bracha is only defined as a doubt if, upon re-focusing on one’s prayer, one does not remember what one as saying. For example, one “wakes up” when saying “Baruch Ata Hashem…” but one does not remember what blessing one is up to. In this case, one returns to the spot where the doubt arises. But as a general rule, one who prays, even without concentration, is considered to have said everything as normal.
Source
Sources: Berachot 34a; OC114, 119 and commentaries