In poker, at the end of each hand, the winner "lays their cards out on the table" to show they've won. Since part of the game of poker is to try to disguise your hand from the other players, when the winning hand is laid on the table, this reveals facts that previously have been hidden or even deliberately lied about (through bluffing) by the players.
This leads to a common idiom, "lay your cards on the table" to mean showing your actual capabilities. In a negotiation, this idiom can mean revealing your actual wants and what you're willing to give in return.
The idiom is also used in a more general form, "lay [something] on the table" and with a broader meaning, to reveal things that are hidden or simply to speak plainly.
In your examples, there are people who might not normally reveal their true beliefs, and the writers are using the idiom of putting them "out on the table" to mean expressing those beliefs openly.
"On the Table" also means for something to be subject to discussion or consideration by a group. In the written example you provided, the characters views about premarital sex were "on the table". I would infer this is not a subject matter they speak often about.
“You seem forced” can be used to indicate what you’ve expressed
Your meaning may have been gotten better than you think. “You seem forced” employs a fairly common usage of “forced”, indicating strain even though there is not a physical force. Note that “you look forced” in your question’s title is a little different, having to do with the way that “seem” refers more comprehensively to apparent behavior and “look” refers more to physical appearance.
Another way to say this that would be specific to tone of voice, diction, etc. would be “you sound forced” which could be hedged a little as “you sound a bit forced” and would be helpfully followed by a bit of explanation or a question, such as “is everything OK?”¹ or “do you feel you have to talk to me?”
Expanding on the “look”/“seem” difference in “you don’t look yourself”
With “you don’t look yourself”, it seems like you are saying that something about the other person’s physical appearance is unusual compared with historical data or some assumed expectation (e.g. someone’s face is green or streaked with tears and you assume they are not always that way, even if you don’t know them).
If you were to say “you don’t seem yourself”, your comments would be understood to refer to someone’s overall presentation. This could certainly include physical appearance, but is more often used to refer to someone’s speech, body language, and other aspects of behavior. I believe this phrase would fit the situation you described.
Note for “you don’t seem yourself”: Similar to “you don’t look yourself”, you would be understood to either be making a comparison to ways you’ve seen this person act before or ways you assume they normally act. For example, you think that the person doesn’t normally put so much emphasis on their words or deliver them in a staccato rhythm.
The note from the end of §1 of this answer applies here as well. Since you’re guessing at something about another person, it probably wouldn’t be a bad idea to describe a little more what you mean by what you’re saying. I personally think it would be appropriate to ask a question aimed at learning more about how this person is feeling and/or what they think about the situation.
Best Answer
It's hard to say for sure, but I think what is "getting" to the speaker and his partner is the lack of sleep. In any case, the phrase "it's getting to me" is often used in a very general sense; it could just mean "all of these circumstances are wearing us down."
Most _____ I've been in a long time simply means: There have been times where I've felt _____ before, and this has been one of the strongest in recent memory. It could be said of fear; it could be said of hunger or elation:
When this expression is used, the speaker isn't usually thinking about other specific instances. It's merely a figure of speech saying that the feelings are particularly strong or intense.