Word VBA cannot exit Run mode (Word 2003)

I have a Word form that has a pool of command buttons, form fields, and combo boxes. There is a lot of form-related code both in the ThisDocument object and in another module I added.

If I open the form by double clicking the document from Windows, it opens and works fine when enabling macros.

However, if I first open Word and then go to File> Open to open the form, I get the "Can not Exit Design Mode" error because the cmdInstructions command cannot be created.

I have seen this error on several computers of other users and sometimes it refers to different controls, not just the cmdInstructions button.

This problem started when we upgraded to Word 2003. Again, if you double-click the document in Windows to open it, no problem. The message only appears when you open Word (with a blank new document).

Has anyone seen this problem before? What do I need to do for my code to avoid this problem?