Can you improvise with others?

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I've put in many hours in devotion to my craft, both in terms of technique and theory, but I simply can't improvise well with others. It doesn't matter how simple the genre is. I start overthinking everything, fall behind, and really have issues getting into the group vibe.

Does anyone else struggle with spontaneous group oriented improv vs. solitary composition?

I play tabletop RPGs -- have been since about 1980. You don't have to worry about blocking or hitting your mark (unless you're using miniatures), as the action all takes place in your head. They're great for improvising dialog, and if someone takes notes, the story can be re-narrated later.

It's been said that Firefly and Serenity were born out of Joss Whedon's own Traveller campaign, but he will neither confirm nor deny it.

I've barely ever played with other people. Other than a guy I grew up with who played the drums.
I find it really difficult to improvise by myself, like I need to hold whatever the tune is together even though there's no one but me listening to it. I think it would be a lot easier to improvise with a group. But I don't know how well I would do at improvising WITH the group, if that makes sense.