A Maryland man and unique programs in Baltimore preparing autistic adults for the future are redefining what it means to live with autism. Download the WBAL app The number of children diagnosed with autism continues to climb -- it's now estimated at one in 68. Experts in the field said huge strides are being made to help the children, but when they grow into adults, they're falling off the cliff. Wolf Dunaway calls himself the autistic werewolf. It's how he describes his internal struggle with autism. "When I was young, I would flap, I would sit on the floor and spin," Dunaway said. "Everybody, I mean everybody, with the exception of my parents, believed that I would never amount to anything. I was told that so much I believed it." For almost two decades, Dunaway lived in Section 8 housing and barely worked. Now, his life is completely different. He owns a condo overlooking Baltimore County, and he makes great money as a high-level technology specialist at the Social Security Administration. In his late 30s, he went back to school and learned about computers. "Having a job gives you the freedom of saying that you're living based on what you've earned, you're contributing to society," Dunaway said. Dunaway's story is not the norm. Forty-two percent of autistic adults in their 20s are unemployed. "This is not a problem that's going away. The diagnostic structure of autism continues and people don't stop being autistic because they graduate," said Ami Taubenfeld, director of Itineris, a nonprofit that helps young autistic adults find jobs. Taubenfeld's daughter, Annie, started a greeting card business. She sells her cards at Whole Foods. "They're really awesome," Annie said. Itineris is busting at the seams, unable to accept everyone who applies because 500,000 autistic children will exit the school system in the U.S. over the next decade -- about 2,000 in the Baltimore metropolitan area. "Families are finding their young adults are falling off the cliff at the age of 21, so this is a very serious need," Taubenfeld said. "I think we're dealing with anxiety, depression. People who are not included and don't have friends or relationships, and they don't have a sense of contributing back to their community," said Dr. Lisa Crabtree, who researches autism and employment and runs a unique program at Towson University that trains future hiring managers about employing autistic adults. "We're trying to get students from across the campus to understand these young adults with autism have skills and abilities, and they're interesting people and not that different," Crabtree said. "The biggest handicap with autism is other people's expectations of what we can become," Dunaway said. For Dunaway, every day in the workplace -- managing frustrations and engaging in social interactions -- remains a challenge. He also speaks to support groups across the nation, telling autistic adults that they can start careers, and it's OK to be imperfect. "The truth is, I want to be like you, I want to be neuro-typical, and I really wouldn't mind being normal because the thing is, no matter what I do, I am always going to be this. I'll always be the werewolf," Dunaway said.