Why can't I change the intensity of my lights while I'm driving?

For some reason when I'm sitting still, I can change the intensity of my lights from dim to bright. But when I start moving, it's stuck at whatever intensity I put it on before I started moving. This makes it difficult to navigate the back roads I live on at night. I have to choose between dim and bright. If I put it on dim, I can't see more than a few feet in front of me. If I put it on bright, I unintentionally blind all the oncoming drivers. My lights blink really fast to show that I just tried to change the levels, but they stay the same intensity. I have a 1998 Toyota Corolla. I just got this car and while it runs just fine, it seems to have a lot of these quirks. And I don't want to trade it in because it's the first car I payed for in full and I love it besides these things. Can someone please help?